A sobbing gunman who shot a stranger in the chest has revealed he smokes weed every day to block out anger over his ‘chaotic childhood’ in a ‘devastating’ 24 Hours in Police Custody case.
In last night’s episode of the Channel 4 show, investigators hunted Justice McCann, 21, from Luton, after he fired a handgun at a stranger’s chest at close range in a shocking attack on 10 August 2019, narrowly missing his heart.
After being arrested, it was revealed McCann, who had an extensive history of offences, began smoking cannabis and drinking alcohol at the age of eight.
His defence team explained: ‘At the age of four, teachers noticed the signs of injuries and neglect on his body. They did alert the children’s services and nothing was done about it.’
Meanwhile they revealed he had also tried to seek help for anger management as an adult, explaining: ‘He’s been to the doctors three times and told them that he can’t deal with his anger. He’s asked for help. No one has helped him.’
Two months later, the victim Jakub, 23, revealed he was moving to Poland, having become scared at loud noises and sudden movements, while McCann was later sentenced to 22-and-a-half years in prison.
Viewers said they felt devastated by the programme, with one saying: ’24 hours in police custody was proper sad last night. What that kid did was terrible, but the system completely failed him, how he’s doing a 22 year stretch?’
24 Hours in Police Custody viewers were left in tears last night after lone gunman Justice McCann, 21, from Luton, who shot a man in the chest broke down while discussing his chaotic childhood
The incident, which took place in New Town, Luton, saw Jakub take a bullet straight to the chest, running home before he collapsed in his garden.
Police discovered CCTV footage showing McCann pointing a gun as a car drove towards him down a residential road, at which point an officer said: ‘Here he comes, look, he’s got something in his hand, there…he’s aiming at that car.’
The video then showed him running after the car and firing the gun as it drove away, while officers tried to identify him by looking at the ‘distinctive writing’ on his hoodie.
Pressure mounted on Bedfordshire Police to find the shooter, with detectives launching a frantic operation to identify the suspect.
Victim Jakub, 23, was left so devastated by the attack that he moved to Poland, having become scared at loud noises and sudden movements
DC Colin Knight of the force’s Guns & Gangs unit said: ‘We have a very dangerous person out there willing to shoot innocent members of the public. The ultimate fear would be if he’s done it once he can do it again…’
The programme then revealed how a young woman walked into Luton police station and told detectives she too had been threatened by the man.
‘He caught me by my throat, and put the gun against my head and asked me whether if I was a wolverine or wolf,’ she said.
Police were left baffled by the statement, with DC Knight saying: ‘He was clearly on one. His mind seems to be racing, he’s not thinking straight. In one sense, he could feel the need to hold a gun to someone’s face but apologising straight afterwards.’
DC Knight said it indicated how ‘strange’ the suspect was acting, adding: ‘Anyone he comes into contact with he is going to hold a gun against him.’
Due to the severity of the crime, police rushed through the forensics and found one suspect – McCann.
Police were able to locate a property where he lived and performed a night-time raid, only to find a woman as well as two young children.
The police visited Jakub in hospital, who revealed he was shot centimetres from his heart.
He underwent surgery to try and remove the bullet, but speaking to the detectives in his hospital bed, he revealed it couldn’t be removed.
‘It went through my kidney and a few other bits,’ he explained, adding that because he ran after the shooting, the bullet had moved around his body and wasn’t located.’
Investigators discovered McCann had 23 convictions for 34 offences, including robbery as a juvenile and possession of cannabis.
Many of those watching said they were left sobbing by the programme and said the system had ‘completely failed’ McCann
Police arrested McCann and he was bought into the station for interview, where he revealed he ‘smokes weed everyday’.
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He explained: ‘So then that way my head’s just frazzled. I’m trying not to overthink because I’m thinking too much sometimes.
‘When I think too much that’s when I just start getting angry. I don’t like being angry.
‘When I get angry, I just black-out and everything is just a blur. I won’t remember nothing afterwards. If I do, it’s just little bits.’
During the programme, McCann broke down in tears as he described smoking weed every day to stop himself feeling ‘so angry’
At the station, he phoned the mother of his children, crying as he said: ‘I’m sorry…you don’t even know. I just don’t want to stress you out.’
Breaking down in hysterics, he sobbed: ‘I’m f***** dumb. I’ve had enough. I love you, I love the kids. Just tell them I love them. I love you too.’
As the police told him the next steps to the arrest, McCann wept: ‘I don’t f**** care man. What do I have to care about? I’ve been trying.’
He continued: ‘There’s hardly a moments peace. I know how I live my life, and I know how it will end up eventually, how it’s ended up.
McCann is serving 22-and-a-half years in prison after firing a handgun at a stranger’s chest at close range in a shocking attack in Luton which left the victim too scared to leave the house again
‘It’s not a nice feeling knowing, sitting there not knowing what day you’re going to disappear.
‘The only time I’ve had peace is when I’m sitting there playing with my children because I don’t think about nothing.
McCann, of Ravenhill Way, Luton, was jailed last year after admitting attempted murder, possessing firearms and intent to supply cannabis
‘I just enjoy spending time with them, trying to teach them things. Things that someone should have sat with me and played with me and talked to me.’
‘Sometimes I feel like I’m always angry at people. Always hurting. No one understands what’s going through my head. What thoughts are going through my head.’
‘All you’re doing is just sitting there hurting so sometimes you just want other people to hurt. But not everyone deserves to hurt just because you’ve been.’
Two months later, Jakub said it was the ‘worst experience of my life’, revealing he gets a ‘jumpy feeling’ from people walking past his house.
McCann’s defence team spoke to the documentary makers, with one explaining: ‘We met Justice when he was 13. I know he has had a very chaotic childhood. When I discovered he had been involved, I was looking for answers as to why he’d done this.
‘We felt the court needed to know about him and his mental state. He’s 21 but such a lot has gone on in his young life.’
McCann fired this gun at the victim, with the bullet landing centimetres from his heart. He went on to spend two weeks in hospital after the attack
Reading through his papers, she explained: ‘He started using cannabis at the age of eight and he said he used cannabis and alcohol to block things out in his head.’
McCann, of Ravenhill Way, Luton, was jailed last year after admitting attempted murder, possessing firearms and intent to supply cannabis.
The court was told how the victim spent two weeks in hospital after the attack, and couldn’t leave his home through fear, adding that the incident had destroyed his life.
Sentencing him to 22-and-a-half years with five years on licence, Judge Mark Bishop called him a ‘dangerous offender’.
He said: ‘These were grave offences in which you almost killed a man totally unknown to you.’
Viewers were left devastated by the programme, with one commenting: ‘Not me crying my eyes out a 24 hours in police custody. So sad.’
Another commented: ‘This man needs mental health support and rehabilitation, not 22+ years in an institution that will likely only cause him more damage. He is a victim of a system, not an evil man.’
Another wrote: ’24 hours in Police Custody was just devastating tonight. The trauma Jakub suffered was clear, my heart broken for him.
‘That said though, the perpetrator needed help, evidently extensive involvement from various agencies during his life and they all failed him. Desperately sad.’
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