A man from Birmingham has been jailed for five years after aiming a gun at a crowd of people outside a nightclub in Dudley. 

Tyrese Demming-Dacosta, aged 24, was sentenced at Wolverhampton Crown Court on Monday (June 3) for the offence which occurred in February this year. 

The 24-year-old had been at the club on King Street when a fight broke out among a group of people in the early hours of Monday, February 5. 

As the argument spilled onto the street, Demming-Dacosta was seen on CCTV pointing the weapon as the crowd fled.

Demming-Dacosta left the scene in a car.

Following an investigation, including a review of CCTV footage, interviews, phone and other communication checks, West Midlands Police identified Demming-Dacosta as a suspect.

He was arrested two weeks later on February 21 and charged. He subsequently pleaded guilty to possessing an imitation firearm with intent to cause fear of violence at Wolverhampton Court on March 20. 

The weapon was not recovered, so officers were unable to establish what type of gun it was.

Demming-Dacosta had only recently come out of prison, having been released on licence in December 2023, and was remanded in custody until his sentencing last Monday.

CCTV footage showed the defendant aiming the gun CCTV footage showed the defendant aiming the gun (Image: West Midlands Police)

He will serve his five-year sentence for the firearm offence concurrently with the remaining four years on his licence. 

Officers from our licensing team also moved swiftly to act against the club for breaching the terms of its operating conditions, including failures in its security. The venue is no longer trading as a nightclub.  

DC Martin Boyle, from our Major Crime Unit Proactive Team, said: "Tyrese Demming-Dacosta went out that night in February carrying a firearm, which he clearly had no qualms about brandishing.

"Given that Demming-Dacosta was so readily prepared to use the weapon, together with the fact that he had just come out of prison and was in blatant breach of his licence conditions, is a testament to his arrogance and callous disregard for others.

"We’re pleased to see him back behind bars where he fully deserves to be."

This latest conviction and sentencing forms part of Operation Target, our ongoing fight against serious and organised crime in the West Midlands.

To find out more visit www.west-midlands.police.uk/operation-target