Man who laughed and joked as officers searched him jailed for five years after they recover firearm in traffic stop
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On Friday 6 December 2024, Fatjon Sadikaj 04/02/1988, of Gorton Street Eccles, was sentenced to five years in prison for possession of a firearm.
On Friday 19 April 2024, uniformed officers stopped a vehicle on Chaddock Lane, Salford, after they noticed it was driving in a strange manner, and suspected the driver to be under the influence of drink or drugs.
The driver and sole occupant of the car, Mr Sadikaj, failed a roadside breath test and was arrested on suspicion of drink driving as officers carried out a search of his person.
During the search, Mr Sadikaj commented: “I have one gun”, while he laughed and said: “It isn’t really, it isn’t really, it’s just fun and games.”
Officers recovered a silver revolver handgun containing bullets tucked into the waistband of his pants, and Mr Sadikaj was further arrested on suspicion of possession of a firearm.
The firearm was immediately submitted for a classification examination. The findings of the report discovered the firearm to be a deactivated revolver, which had been modified to enable it to fire, making it a Section 5 Firearm.
Mr Sadikaj pleaded guilty to possession of a Section 5 Firearm and was sentenced to five years in prison.
DC David Prowse, of the Salford Challenger Team said: “What started off as a suspected drink or drug driving traffic stop, has resulted in a dangerous weapon being taken from our streets and the sentencing of the individual carrying it.
“There’s no place for guns on our streets and GMP takes a zero-tolerance approach in tackling and bringing to justice those who chose to carry such weapons.
“We want to ensure the streets of Greater Manchester are a safe place for all those who live, work and visit here, and this result is just one small step in our endeavour.”
Between 2020 and 2023, Greater Manchester Police recovered more firearms than any other force in the Northwest, accounting for 58% of all firearms recoveries in the region. For each gun that we recover, that’s a potential life saved, or firearms incident prevented.