Six years behind bars for man linked to firearms stolen from Sheffield gunsmiths shop

Mohammed Maroof, care of HMP Moorlands, was sentenced to six years in prison for a number of weapons charges, during a hearing held at Hull Crown Court on August 24 this year.

A South Yorkshire Police (SYP) spokesperson confirmed that the sentencing related to charges ‘connected with the recovery of firearms in the Quarry Lane area of Sheffield’ in August 2020.

They added: “The shotguns were forensically recovered and determined to be firearms that had been stolen from a gunsmiths shop in Sheffield. This is why Maroof was also sentenced for handling stolen goods.”

SYP has been asked to confirm whether Maroof's crimes relate to raids on All Guns Discounted on Leigh Road, Attercliffe in January 2019 and Hardy’s Gunsmiths on Alderson Road, Highfield in April 2020.

Detective Inspector Tony Slater from the force’s Armed Crime Team said that as a result of this particular investigation ‘a number of viable firearms’ had been taken off Sheffield’s streets, and ‘out of the hands of criminals’.

“Firearms have no place on the streets of South Yorkshire and neither do those individuals who seek to use firearms to cause fear, harm and potentially commit violent crime,” said DI Slater.

He added: “Maroof is now serving a custodial sentence for his crimes and our efforts continue within the Armed Crime Team to apprehend and put before the courts those who engage in armed criminality.”

SYP’s Armed Crime Team was created following what Detective Superintendent Paul Murphy has previously described as a ‘slight increase’ in firearms discharges in early 2021.

In addition to Maroof, the team’s work has resulted in a number of criminals being taken off the city’s streets, including a trio sentenced to 60 years for a double-shooting on the Manor estate.

The force has also sought to reduce gun violence in the city through its Operation Musketeer, through which undercover officers have targeted known drug lines in the city.

Maroof, aged 26, was brought to justice during last week’s hearing for the following charges: possession of a firearm without certificate, possession of a shotgun without a certificate, possession of a smooth bore gun and handling stolen goods.