THE gun massacre in Plymouth last week could be declared a TERROR ATTACK over the gunman’s warped, women-hating views, it is claimed.
Jake Davison, 22, regularly posted misogyny-filled videos on his YouTube page and had ties to the warped online world of incels – a global collective of twisted men who identify as ‘involuntary celebrates’.
These individuals routinely express violent hatred of women for not wanting to have sex with them and have regularly praise mass murders and other violent incidents – usually against women – involving incels.
Now, according to The Times, officers from the South West Counter Terrorism Intelligence Unit will look at Davison’s phone, computer and online postings to asses what extent being an ‘incel’ played in the massacre.
If being an incel is deemed to be a motive for the massacre, which left five innocent people dead, including a three-year-old girl – then the incident will fall into counter-terror policing and be formally declared a terror attack.
MUM AND SON SURE TO RECOVER
A mum and son gunned down by loner Jake Davison are expected to recover.
Ben Parsonage, 33, was shot during Thursday’s deadly rampage in Plymouth but has already left hospital.
His mother, Michelle, 53, is to have an operation on her arm before being discharged.
Astonishingly, the pair survived and were treated at Derriford Hospital in the city.
Ben’s brother, Jordan, wrote on Facebook that his mother was “expected to make a full recovery”.
He added: “I want to say a massive ‘thank you’ to everyone who has messaged and called about their concerns about my family. It really means a lot.
PLYMOUTH LEFT IN STATE OF SHOCK AFTER MASS SHOOTING, COUNCIL CHIEF SAYS
The community in Plymouth is in a state of shock and reluctant to leave their homes following a mass shooting which left five people dead, the city council’s leader has said.
Nick Kelly, leader of Plymouth City Council, said people “wanted a hug and assurances things will get better” after gunman Jake Davison killed five people before turning the weapon on himself.
It came after hundreds of people attended a candle-lit vigil close to where the incident took place on Friday night in an outpouring of grief for the victims.
Davison, 22, shot dead his mother on Thursday in the Keyham area of the city before going on to kill four more people, including a three-year-old girl, and injure two others.
Meanwhile, an investigation has been launched into Davison’s possession of a shotgun and a firearms licence, which were returned to him after being removed at the end of last year.
HUNDREDS GATHER TO MOURN VICTIMS OF PLYMOUTH SHOOTING
There has been a heartfelt plea for change as hundreds gathered in Plymouth to pay their respects to the five people killed in one of the UK’s worst mass shootings.
Civic leaders, religious figures, politicians, emergency service workers and the military joined around 200 people outside the Guildhall in Plymouth city centre to hold a one minute’s silence yesterday.
They gathered to mourn and reflect on last week’s devastating events when gunman Jake Davison, 22, launched his murderous spree in the Keyham area of the city.
Davison shot his 51-year-old mother Maxine Davison, also known as Maxine Chapman, at a house in Biddick Drive before he went into the street and shot dead Sophie Martyn, aged three, and her father, Lee Martyn, 43.
MURDEROUS RAMPAGE
Davison shot dead his mother Maxine first of all during his killing spree on Thursday evening before shooting and killing Mr Martyn and his daughter Sophie in the street.
Davison then aimed and shot at Ben and Michelle before walking out of a cul-de-sac and shooting dead dog walker Stephen Washington, 59.
His last victim was 66-year Kate Shepherd, who was shot dead outside the Blush hair salon, before he turned the gun on himself and took his own life.
It emerged on Friday Davison had his gun taken from him in December 2020 following an allegation of assault made two-months previously.
LAYING HER LIFE ON THE LINE
A mum who was blasted by the Plymouth shooter risked her life to run out in the street to place a blanket over the bodies of a murdered father and his daughter.
Michelle Parsonage was shot on her porch by Jake Davison as he went on a murderous rampage killing five people last week.
Mrs Parsonage, 53, braved being shot at again to go and lay a blanket over Lee Martyn and his three-year-old daughter Sophie, a witness has revealed.
She was later taken to hospital after sustaining wounds to her hand and arm after Davison had fired through the door of her home.
Her 33-year-old son Ben was also injured but both are expected to make a full recovery.
FIREWORKS PLANNED IN MEMORY OF PLYMOUTH SHOOTING VICTIMS
A popular fireworks competition taking place this week will be dedicated to those who were killed in the Plymouth shootings.
The annual British Firework Championships are being held in the city on Wednesday and Thursday evenings.
In a special tribute to Maxine Davison, 51, three-year-old Sophie Martyn, her father Lee Martyn, 43, Stephen Washington, 59, and Kate Shepherd, 66, five heart-shaped fireworks will be set off at 9.15pm on both nights.
Council leader Nick Kelly said: “We have thought long and hard about whether the event should go ahead or not, but after listening to many people’s views we’ve decided to dedicate these two nights to the victims.
“We’ve also spoken to members of the community in Keyham to get their views. We know the firework championships are something children, in particular, love. It is an event that brings joys to thousands and it brings Plymouth Together.”
TORY MP CALLS FOR MORE RIGOROUS CHECKS BEFORE GUNS ARE RETURNED
Tory MP Tim Loughton called for more rigorous checks before guns are returned.
He said: “Surely, those must include scrutinising social media to get a full idea of the person’s background.
“It’s a matter of public record. It’s a misunderstanding of social media to suggest it would be invading their privacy.”
JAKE DAVISON’S MOTHER SAID SHE WOULD ‘NEVER GIVE UP ON HIM’
The devoted mum who was shot dead by her gun fanatic son Jake Davison had said she would “never give up on him”.
The killer blasted Maxine, 51, after kicking down her door as he launched his shooting spree.
Her best friend, Tracey Clarke, 45, told The Sun: “She was devoted. She said she would always be there for him because he is her son. She said he had mental health problems but I never thought it would escalate to this.”
She said he had previously left punch marks on the wall of Maxine’s home.
POLICE REPORTEDLY CONSIDERING WHETHER TO CLASS ATTACK AS TERRORISM
Police are reportedly considering whether to class the attack in which Jake Davison killed five people as terrorism despite initially calling it a domestic incident.
Devon and Cornwall Police are leading the investigation but are reportedly working with the South West Counter Terrorism Intelligence Unit to probe Davison links to the misogynist incel movement, The Times reports .
The force are already under fire for their decision to return Davison’s gun without looking into his social media and online activity due to ‘privacy concerns’.
HE ‘SHOT VICTIMS AT CLOSE-RANGE’
Shocked witnesses said Jake Davison, 22, left his family home before shooting dead five people, including a young girl in Plymouth last night.
The crane operator shot himself dead yesterday after gunning down a his mum Maxine, 51.
Davison also killed three-year-old Sophie Martyn, and her father Lee, 43, mum Kate Shepherd, 66, second woman and Stephen Washington, 59, – believed to have been walking his dogs – during the horror.
One neighbour said they saw Davison shoot the toddler and her parent at close range, and hovered over their bodies after killing them, shortly after 6pm.
CCTV APPEARS TO SHOW PLYMOUTH SHOOTER JAKE DAVISON WIELDING SHOTGUN SECONDS BEFORE KILLING FIFTH RAMPAGE VICTIM
Footage seems to show the twisted gunman holding a large gun in the middle of his grim rampage in Plymouth.
The figure, believed to be Jake Davison, calmly crosses the road as a car passes and holds the 3ft long shotgun by his side.
The CCTV, from ITV News, appears to show the coldblooded killer after he had already killed four of his victims.
He then walks in the direction of a hair salon, which is where he shot his fifth victim Kate Shepherd, 66, before turning the gun on himself.
Davison, 22, shot his own mum before randomly killing four other people and then turned the gun on himself in a grim gun rampage in Plymouth.
POLICE FORCES ASKED TO REVIEW GUN APPLICATION PROCESSES IN WAKE OF KEYHAM DEATHS
Police forces in England and Wales are being asked to review their current firearm application processes in the wake of the Plymouth mass shooting, the Government has announced.
Questions are continuing to mount over how Keyham gunman Jake Davison, 22, obtained a firearms licence and carried out his spree, killing five people before turning the gun on himself.
The Government said on Sunday evening that it was preparing statutory guidance to help ensure higher standards of decision-making for police firearms licensing applications.
This will cover social media checks of those applying for permission to own a firearm or shotgun, according to the Home Office.
All police forces in England and Wales are now being asked to assess whether they need to revisit any existing licences.
COPS FEARED PRIVACY VIOLATIONS WHEN GIVING GUN BACK
Cops failed to trawl through Jake Davison’s online activity before giving back the gun he then used to kill five people.
Devon and Cornwall chief constable Shaun Sawyer admitted his force feared invading the 22-year-old’s privacy.
He said: “We take and return firearms on a not irregular basis when people have emotional crises or we receive reports from family members, then they can be returned.
“What we don’t do, because firearms licencing is a lawful thing, is trawl the internet looking at people’s lives. That’s an invasion of privacy.”
Davison’s pump action shotgun was handed back last month.
WITNESS RECALLS SEEING HERO DAD AND DAUGHTER BEING SHOT
Witness John Partridge, 70, who lives on Biddick Drive — the cul-de-sac in which the rampage began — told The Sun: “I heard two shots, like loud fireworks, they went ‘bang, bang’.
“I went to my kitchen window and saw a little girl and a man running into the road.
“He shot at them from about 12ft away. The man was trying to protect the child and had an arm over her. I was frozen to the spot, it was terrifying.”
Mr Partridge said he called police before Davison glared at him through the window.
He added: “I just ducked and he moved on down the street. After he had walked on, my wife wanted to help the girl and the man but I pulled her back out of the door. I was worried she would be shot too.”
PRIEST URGES AGAINST ‘CYCLE OF ANGER’ AT PRAYERS FOR PLYMOUTH SHOOTING VICTIMS
Prayers have been said for the five victims of the Plymouth shooting as the community comes together in mourning.
A church in Keyham close to the scene used a Sunday service to remember those killed on Thursday, while a special prayer has been written by the Bishop of Exeter.
It came as questions continue to mount over how gunman Jake Davison, 22, obtained a firearms licence and carried out his spree before turning the gun on himself.
Father David Way, parish priest at St Thomas’ Church in Keyham, told the PA news agency after the service: “Those people who have died, we have to keep those in our prayers, but also the loved ones which have been left behind.
“I’m hoping we can break any cycle of anger, as it were, and bring a cycle of love for everybody involved.”
During the service, he asked the congregation to pray for the five victims, Maxine Davison, Lee Martyn, Sophie Martyn, Kate Shepherd and Stephen Washington, adding: “We pray also for peace for Jake.”
LAYING HER LIFE ON THE LINE
A mum who was blasted by the Plymouth shooter risked her life to run out in the street to place a blanket over the bodies of a murdered father and his daughter.
Michelle Parsonage was shot on her porch by Jake Davison as he went on a murderous rampage killing five people last week.
Mrs Parsonage, 53, braved being shot at again to go and lay a blanket over Lee Martyn and his three-year-old daughter Sophie, a witness has revealed.
She was later taken to hospital after sustaining wounds to her hand and arm after Davison had fired through the door of her home.
Her 33-year-old son Ben was also injured but both are expected to make a full recovery.
PLYMOUTH MP CALLS FOR ‘THOROUGH INVESTIGATION’ INTO KEYHAM SHOOTING
Luke Pollard, Labour MP for Plymouth Sutton and Devonport, has called for a “thorough investigation” into the Keyham mass shooting.
He told BBC Breakfast yesterday: “I think people’s emotions have changed from shock and disbelief into now feeling that profound loss of the five people who were killed.
“But also a sense of anger. Wanting to know the questions as to how was this allowed to happen, why did this happen, and were there opportunities to stop this happening that were not taken?
“We need to get to the answers of those and that will take some time, and police need to be able to have the space to do it. But we need to make sure the community gets those proper answers because they deserve them.
“That means they need to be thorough, detailed and accurate, and not speculative, and that will take some time sadly.”
‘THE WORLD IS A DARKER PLACE WITHOUT YOU’: TRIBUTES TO PLYMOUTH SHOOTING VICTIMS
A father gunned down alongside his three-year-old daughter in the Plymouth mass shooting “would do anything for anybody”, according to a tribute from his cousin.
Lee Martyn, 43, and his daughter Sophie were killed when gunman Jake Davison opened fire in Biddick Drive in the Keyham area of the city on Thursday evening. Jess Morcom, Mr Martyn’s cousin and a journalist at PlymouthLive, paid tribute to the pair and spoke of the loss felt by her family.
In a post on Twitter, she said that Mr Martyn “had the kindest heart, would do anything for anybody” and that “you only had to take one look at him to see how much he loved and adored his family”. I was always so proud to be able to say you were my cousin,” she added. “The world is going to be a much darker place without you in it.”
In a tribute to Sophie, Ms Morcom said her family had been “truly blessed” to have “seen you grow into such a beautiful, funny and clever girl” over the three years of her life.
“My heart hurts so much thinking about how it should have been so many more. I will miss your cheekiness and your dancing the most,” she added.
PLYMOUTH MP CALLS FOR ‘THOROUGH INVESTIGATION’ INTO KEYHAM SHOOTING
Luke Pollard, Labour MP for Plymouth Sutton and Devonport, has called for a “thorough investigation” into the Keyham mass shooting.
He told BBC Breakfast yesterday: “I think people’s emotions have changed from shock and disbelief into now feeling that profound loss of the five people who were killed.
“But also a sense of anger. Wanting to know the questions as to how was this allowed to happen, why did this happen, and were there opportunities to stop this happening that were not taken?
“We need to get to the answers of those and that will take some time, and police need to be able to have the space to do it. But we need to make sure the community gets those proper answers because they deserve them.
“That means they need to be thorough, detailed and accurate, and not speculative, and that will take some time sadly.”
‘THE WORLD IS A DARKER PLACE WITHOUT YOU’: TRIBUTES TO PLYMOUTH SHOOTING VICTIMS
A father gunned down alongside his three-year-old daughter in the Plymouth mass shooting “would do anything for anybody”, according to a tribute from his cousin.
Lee Martyn, 43, and his daughter Sophie were killed when gunman Jake Davison opened fire in Biddick Drive in the Keyham area of the city on Thursday evening. Jess Morcom, Mr Martyn’s cousin and a journalist at PlymouthLive, paid tribute to the pair and spoke of the loss felt by her family.
In a post on Twitter, she said that Mr Martyn “had the kindest heart, would do anything for anybody” and that “you only had to take one look at him to see how much he loved and adored his family”. I was always so proud to be able to say you were my cousin,” she added. “The world is going to be a much darker place without you in it.”
In a tribute to Sophie, Ms Morcom said her family had been “truly blessed” to have “seen you grow into such a beautiful, funny and clever girl” over the three years of her life.
“My heart hurts so much thinking about how it should have been so many more. I will miss your cheekiness and your dancing the most,” she added.
HOW DID THE INCEL MOVEMENT START (CONTINUED)?
Speaking to the BBC in 2018, Alana said her incel community was initially benign.
She said: “There was probably a bit of anger and some men were a bit clueless about how women are unique, individual humans, but in general it was a supportive place.”
One couple who met on the site reportedly later got married, she added.
It was not until she read about a man killing six women in California in 2014 that she realised the movement she started over a decade earlier had been co-opted.
HOW DID THE INCEL MOVEMENT START?
The incel movement, originally called invcel, in the late 1990s in Canada as a support group for people whose social anxiety and other problems made it hard for them to form relationships.
It was started by a queer woman living in Toronto called Alana (she has not revealed her last name publicly).
She said she began the movement when she began trying to date in her mid-20s and was struggling with loneliness. She thought there would be other people like her so she started ‘Alana’s Involuntary Celibacy Project’ – a text website which acted as an early forum to give people support.
It was crucially meant as a place for people to find comfort and help to build social skills and make friends who understood what they were going through.
Alana eventually found a loving relationship and began to drift away from the movement around 2000 as she did not think it would be “hijacked by angry men” who sought to blame women for their problems.
WHAT IS AN INCEL?
An incel – short for involuntarily celibate – is someone who subscribes to a violent ideology that men are being unfairly denied sex because women have too much agency.
Incels believe that they are being discriminated against for not being conventionally attractive because women instinctively go for “chads” – men who are conventionally handsome.
They divide women into the categories of “Staceys” – conventionally attractive women – and “Beckys” – women who are unattractive in their view – and believe women should be forced into accepting them as sexual partners.
Incel ideology ranges for people who believe women should be “rationed” out for men to others who think women should be “punished” for rejecting men.
The movement, which was boosted by online forums such as Reddit, 4chan and 8chan, is based in a misogynistic belief that feminism has given women too much agency and freedom to choose their own romantic and sexual partners.
FORMER MET POLICE CHIEF SAYS OFFICERS SHOULD MONITOR SOCIAL MEDIA OF PEOPLE APPLYING FOR GUN LICENCES
A former Metropolitan Police chief said officers should trawl through social media accounts of people applying for firearms licences to ensure that “guns do not fall into the hands of dangerous people” after the deadly Keyham shooting.
Former commissioner Lord Stevens told The Sunday Telegraph that Davison was “clearly a dangerous man”, adding: “The videos he made should have been taken into account when he applied for a shotgun licence.
“There needs to be a trawling of online content for an in-depth assessment of who these people are and what they think.
FORMER MET POLICE CHIEF SAYS OFFICERS SHOULD MONITOR SOCIAL MEDIA OF PEOPLE APPLYING FOR GUN LICENCES
A former Metropolitan Police chief said officers should trawl through social media accounts of people applying for firearms licences to ensure that “guns do not fall into the hands of dangerous people” after the deadly Keyham shooting.
Former commissioner Lord Stevens told The Sunday Telegraph that Davison was “clearly a dangerous man”, adding: “The videos he made should have been taken into account when he applied for a shotgun licence.
