We saw bodies as smirking ‘Terminator' gunman who slaughtered 5 prowled our quiet street… the bloodbath still haunts us

The Sun

5 hours ago

WITH neat, well-tended gardens and neighbours chatting over their picket fences, Biddick Drive feels like a haven of peace in the heart of a bustling city.
Yet a terrible shadow has been cast over this seemingly idyllic cul-de-sac - and locals are still struggling to shake off the memories of August 12, 2021, when blood ran in the streets, leaving five dead.
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It was on that hot, humid evening in Plymouth four years ago that deranged gunman Jake Davison emerged from his 51-year-old mother's terraced house, having shot and killed her.
Thick-set, his body pumped up through steroid abuse and hours in the gym, he then strolled downhill, spraying locals with rounds from a Weatherby pump-action shotgun as he went.
Eye-witnesses told how the Ted Bundy-obsessed gunman - who had branded himself "Terminator" before the rampage - was apparently enjoying himself as he shot neighbours Michelle Parker and her son Ben Parsonage, injuring both.
Ben recalled: "He had a smirk on his face, like he didn't care what he was doing."
By the time Davison's murderous 19-minute rampage came to an end, five people lay dead or dying on the streets of Plymouth's Keyham district. It was one of the worst mass shootings in British criminal history.
Unsurprisingly, those living on the road are still haunted by that tragic day.
As one resident told The Sun: "When you're out of the house now, you take notice of who's around. The memories fade – they don't leave."
In addition to his mum Maxine, victims included three-year-old Sophie Martyn, nicknamed 'Daddy's Princess', her father Lee, 43, shot three times, Stephen Washington, 59, a carer for his disabled wife who was walking his husky dog through nearby parkland, and artist Kate Shepherd, 66, blasted outside a hair salon.
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Finally, confronted by unarmed PC Zach Printer, who bravely ran to within 20 metres of the killer shouting for him to stop, 22-year-old Davison turned the gun on himself.
Within days, reports emerged of his troubled state of mind. One former teacher told of Davison's unhealthy love of guns. Another had concerns about his anger management.
CCTV appears to show Jake Davison during Plymouth shooting spree
His desperate mother, with whom he had a violent and volatile relationship, told relatives of his obsessive use of energy drinks and muscle-boosting supplements while his absent father said he "was in his own world", largely devoid of emotion.
Later, an inquest jury would hear how staff at Plymouth's Child and Adolescent Mental Health Service noted that Davison, diagnosed as autistic 10 years earlier, enjoyed violent computer games and used "sexual talk which was quite extreme".
Aged 13, his ambition was to be a sniper.
Police enquiries showed that, as an adult, he became immersed in the shocking world of incels – a violent online sub-culture dominated by men unable to find love.
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But apprentice crane driver Davison's mental health background was only one factor in his victims' fate.
In concluding that all five were unlawfully killed, an inquest jury pointed to a "catastrophic failure" by Devon and Cornwall Police.
Officers granted him a firearms licence in 2018 in the full knowledge that he had assaulted teachers and a fellow student.
And although in September 2020 he launched a "ferocious, intense and unprovoked attack" on a teenage boy and 15-year-old girl, he was placed on a "deferred change programme" called Pathfinder instead of facing a court.
Davison 'viewed women with contempt' and sympathised with incel culture
An inquest heard how Davison spent a lot of time reading and writing about 'incel' culture.
The term refers to "involuntary celibates" with the movement labelled a "hate" group as many followers believe they are owed sex by women.
Incels believe they have no possibility of finding a partner to get love, validation or acceptance from.
In turn, this makes some incels want to strike out at the world because they have been rejected by girls, while others blame attractive men for their perceived problems.
The self-confessed black sheep of the family also described himself as "The Terminator" in a slew of "deeply disturbing" posts.
He shared posts referring to 'violence, misogynistic views, viewing women with contempt' and "sympathy with incel culture", the inquest was told.
He also looked up Ted Bundy and incel serial killers, watched videos on firearms and how to reload them and posted a one minute clip from an online game called KillZone.
Jurors heard Davison branded mum Maxine a "dirty insufferable, a vile creature" who was difficult to live with.
His firearms licence was seized only in December 2020 after another Pathfinder member tipped off police that it remained valid.
Yet it was returned seven months later after an officer decided Davison was "low risk" and his decision – which should have been signed off by a senior colleague – went unchallenged.
Today, many Keyham residents cannot understand how laws supposed to protect them from gun crime proved so hopelessly ineffective.
On Royal Navy Avenue – the route Davison took as he headed towards his final victim – resident Victoria White, 51, told us: "You think about those who died and their families and wonder how this could ever have happened.
"I'd known [victim] Lee for years. I worked with him when I was 16 at a local Toshiba dealer.
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"My neighbour and I saw someone lying on the ground just up the road. We thought they were unconscious because of drug use. But they had been shot there in broad daylight.
"What happened was dreadful. It's always there with you.
"When you're out of the house now, you take notice of who's around.
"The memories fade – they don't leave. I never used to worry about locking my door…but I do now."
Another neighbour, who asked to be named only as Paul, agreed. "I suffer from PTSD," he said.
"I don't think what happened should ever be forgotten and I understand why people still have questions.
"But it affected me very badly and I can't talk about it."
Devon and Cornwall Police has since made major changes to its firearms licensing unit - more than doubling staffing levels to 99 by 2023, improving training procedures and appointing four senior managers instead of one to assess high-risk decisions.
On Biddick Drive itself, there is an understandable reluctance among neighbours to talk about the shootings.
The feeling was summed up by 85-year-old Arthur Beacham, out walking his springer spaniel Barney.
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"It's something that wants forgetting," he said.
"What happened was awful, but it's gone, it's over, and we can't bring anyone back. The man was off his head. How do you deal with people like that?
"Any one of us could have been a victim. I was out with my dog that evening and my usual walk would have taken me into his path.
"For some reason, I decided we'd go to St Levan's Park instead."
A few streets away, Manos, a gardener, said social media had made the aftermath of the tragedy worse for some residents.
What happened was awful but it's gone, it's over and we can't bring anyone back. The man was off his head. How do you deal with people like that?
Arthur Beacham
He said: "Years ago, if a violent crime happened in your neighbourhood, you would chat it through with your family and friends and process it gradually in your own time.
"Social media changed all that. Now photos flash up as 'memories' whether you want them to or not. And even if those photos aren't directly of the scene of the crime, they can still upset you by reminding you where you were and what you were doing at the time.
"They come up on some thread and people share them, and suddenly everyone is weighing in."
'Moving on'
But he added that Keyham remained a place people wanted to live.
"My customers love it here," he said. "I don't hear anyone saying they want to leave."
Latest figures from the estate agents' website Rightmove bear that out.
Average sold prices reached a peak of £167,315 in 2022 and since then have risen by a further 9% to stand at £182,817.
One young mother told how she'd moved into Biddick Drive – which comprises mostly rental properties – even though some friends couldn't understand why.
"I wasn't here when it all happened. I've just taken the road as I found it," she said.
"The truth is, it's a lovely community. It's quiet, people talk to each other, it feels safe for kids.
"As far as I'm concerned, there's no stigma. Why wouldn't you want to live here?"
It's the kind of spirit that has also been embraced by local businesses.
At Henderson Local Convenience Store, yards from where Davison killed himself, the owner said her family had been welcomed and supported by locals.
"This place lay mostly empty after what he did," she said. "It was briefly a café, then a shop but maybe because everyone remembered what happened, these businesses quickly closed.
"We came in from outside. I had to ask a customer why a candle and bouquet of flowers had been left here. That was how I discovered what had happened.
"Now we have many customers and they appreciate that we're trying to give them a good service.
"Keyham is a good place to live. This is a strong community and it is moving on."
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