Massacre in the Lake District: TWELVE people gunned down by rampaging cabbie, 52, who then turns weapon on himself

By Liz Hazelton for MailOnline
Updated: 17:19 EST, 2 June 2010

• 12 dead, 25 wounded after horrific shooting spree
  
• Cab driver suspect Derrick Bird commits suicide in woodland
  
• Gunman used two weapons during three-hours bloodbath
  
• Police examining 30 separate crime scenes across Cumbria
  
• Gunman had rowed with three colleagues last night
• Victims include farmer Garry Purdham, pensioner Michael Pike, 66
  

Police tonight revealed that 12 people had been shot by a cab driver who went on a bloody rampage in the Lake District before turning the gun on himself.

Derrick Bird, a divorced father-of-two, was discovered in woodland near Boot, Cumbria, by police.

At a press conference tonight, detectives finally laid out the the full extent of his deadly killing spree. Another 25 people are wounded, three critically.

Police are working at 30 crime scenes across the Lake District. They now believe that Bird, who witnesses described rampaging through the area drenched in blood, used two weapons.

Detective Chief Constable Stuart Hyde said: 'This has shocked the people of Cumbria and around the country to the core. It was terrifying and horrific.'

He said investigators were unable to understand the motivation for the crimes as the inquiry was at such an early stage.

'We will look into Mr Bird's history, his access to firearms and his motivation for the shootings,' he added.

'It would be wrong to speculate at this stage the circumstances of this tragedy, and the gravity of it dictates that we have a full and comprehensive investigation and try to understand why someone would want to take so many lives in such a short space of time.'

Witnesses today described horrific scenes as the cab driver shot his victims in the head at point blank range and gunned down others at random  through the shattered windscreen of his car.

It is understood he deliberately targeted three of his colleagues after arguing with them last night.

Bird began his murderous spree early this morning after driving to the taxi rank at the centre of the picturesque town of Whitehaven.

He is understood to have got out of his car to deliberately target the other cabbies, shooting at least one in the head at close quarters. The grandfather then returned to his vehicle to make his escape.

It as at that point that he began firing indiscriminately through the smashed windscreen as he careered through the town.

Terrified pedestrians were forced to dash for cover as he sprayed the streets with bullets. Others holed themselves up in shops, pubs and houses.

Bird then tore through the area in his Citroen Picasso. As he drove, he continued firing. There were fatalities in Egremont, Seascale and near Gosforth.

Mr Bird's twin brother, David, was believed to be one of his victims.

In the last location, Bird shot a young farmer, named locally as Garry Purdham, in a field where he was working with his uncle.

He is described as a father-of-two in his 30s.

The killer eventually abandoned his car in woodland near Boot before turning the gun on himself. The bloodbath took less than three hours and left four towns devastated

Local landlord Rod Davies said: 'The guy flipped for whatever reason. Whether it was pre-meditated, we don't know.'

A Whitehaven cab driver said he understood a total of three taxi drivers had been shot, two fatally.

The man, who did not want to be named, claimed an argument broke out between Bird and the other three men last night at the Duke Street taxi rank.

He said: 'All of the taxi drivers were friends. But I heard last night there was an argument on the taxi rank.

'I don't know what caused it, but something must have happened last night. Bird took off in his car and went home. I don't know what time of night it was.'

Cumbria police said eight people remained in hospital, three were critical and five were seriously injured.

A retired father of two was also among the victims of the gunman in Seascale, his family confirmed tonight.

Michael Pike, 64, was killed while cycling in the village where he lived with his wife, Sheena, and son, Jason, 39.

Jason Pike said: 'We understand that he was shot dead while out cycling which he did most mornings to keep fit.

'He was a much-loved husband, father and grandfather. He was a happy man at the time he died and satisfied with the things he achieved.'

The grandfather of three had previously been an active trade union organiser at Sellafield.

His son added: 'It came completely out of the blue to us. It was totally unexpected. To the best of our knowledge we think this was a random murder.

'We are well aware my father was not the only person who died today and we feel for all the other people who lost loved ones.'

Another of the victims was named tonight as Jane Robinson, 66, of Seascale, Cumbria.

Unmarried Miss Robinson was shot in Drigg Road just yards from the home she shared with her twin sister Barrie.

According to eye witnesses, Bird beckoned her to the car before shooting her dead.

This evening, people were struggling to come to terms with what had happened.

A favourite haunt of holidaymakers, the Lake District is one of the most beautiful parts of the country with one of the smallest police forces.

A neighbour of the man believed to have been shot dead in Egremont said he was a 'quiet man', who would walk into the town several times every day.

Tracy Maudling said: 'For him to lose his life like that is terrible. He'd been retired for maybe the last five years or something and he just enjoyed doing his garden.

'It's just horrible. We all go up the street every day, he was just in the wrong place at the wrong time.'

A neighbour of the farmer killed near Gosforth said she had thought the shots were her son shooting crows.

It was some time before she released what had actually happened.

Today David Cameron pledged  to do everything possible to help communities 'shattered' by the killing spree.

Updating the Commons at the start of Prime Minister's Questions, he said: 'The Chief Constable of Cumbria is working closely with other forces and other emergency services to ensure a coordinated response to these rapidly moving events.

'The Government will do everything it possibly can to help the local community and those affected and to keep the House informed.'

Bird himself, a divorcee known as Birdy, had appeared to be a quiet man to those who knew him. There was no hint that he could carry out such deadly actions.

A local post-mistress, who has known the suspect for many years, described him as a 'quiet man' who was a 'very difficult man to drag a conversation out of'.

Muriel Gilpin, 60, postmistress of Arlecdon Post Office, told Mail Online: 'Everybody knows everybody here. That is why everybody is in shock.

'He comes into the post office for milk sometimes. He's a cab driver. Derrick became a grandfather over a fortnight ago. I think he lives by himself.

[caption]

'When they said it was a cab driver, I thought someone had shot Derrick. He comes from a nice family. He married a local girl. I think they divorced more than 20 years ago.

'I have no idea where it has come from.'

She said Post Office managers had ordered her to shut up the shop when news of the killings broke.

Mrs Gilpin added: 'The paper delivery man said he'd seen Derrick this morning getting into his car.'

Bird, from Rowrah, near Frizington, is believed to have two sons. He has a number of brothers. 

Witnesses described chaotic scenes as they dived for cover after hearing shots being fired. They said they spotted a man sitting in a car with a smashed windscreen wielding a shotgun.

He is believed to have been taking pot-shots at anyone who approached him at the taxi rank.

Resident Theresa Bagshaw said: 'There's talk in the town that one person was shot in the face three times.

'It's absolutely awful. I've never ever heard of anything like this or a gunman  on the loose before.'

Brian Edwards, a 67-year-old joiner came face-to-face with the gunman in Whitehaven.

'I heard a bang and thought at first it might be the cannon that they fire at the docks - but it was too early,' he said.

'There were four shots and I looked round to see the taxi driver lying on the pavement.

'Seconds before he had been standing in a doorway having a cigarette just ten feet away from us - he was just blasted in the head by the gunman at point-blank range.  

'He was in a terrible state and I didn't think he could still be alive.

'Then a man carrying a rifle with a large telescopic sight on it ran past just feet away and fired again.

'A second driver was shot but apparently he is not too badly injured. The gunman didn't say anything.'

Helen Owens, who works at solicitors' practice Brockbank, Cain and Hall on Duke Street in Whitehaven, said one of her colleagues saw a dead man on the street.

She said: 'We heard a couple of gunshots and the police running about. One of our secretaries was out at the time and she saw a guy lying dead on the ground covered with a sheet - she saw his trainers sticking out.'

Speaking this afternoon, Deputy Chief Constable Stuart Hyde said: 'I can confirm that we've found a body in a wooded area near Boot which we believe to be Mr Bird, together with a firearm.

'A formal identification will be made later.'

Labour MP James Reed said: 'It's an absolute heartbreaking tragedy for the families involved. I am born and raised in Whitehaven and here with my wife and children.

'I have never heard of anything like this in the history of the town. It is just a paralysing shock to us all. These kinds of things don't happen here.

'There is no real history of violent crime in the area. It is a fantastic, really strong community. People do look out for each other.

'The community ties are very, very strong. I am struggling to understand how this happened. It's staggering and it's very, very hard to take in. The whole area is literally stunned at the moment.'

Deputy Chief Constable Hyde told BBC News that establishing how Bird accessed the guns would be part of the investigation.

'We want to clearly understand his possession of these weapons, what happened, what went wrong and why he decided to use these to shoot people,' he said.

Mr Hyde added that investigators would be speaking to people who knew Bird about the days leading up to the rampage.

'What we want to do is ensure we understand what has happened, speak to people about him, his life, what has gone on in the last few days, what might have turned somebody into a killer.'

BLASTED IN THE HEAD AT POINT BLANK RANGE: WITNESSES DESCRIBE HORROR OF LAKE DISTRICT SHOOTINGS

GLENDA PEARS, who runs L&G Taxis, said both Bird and the Duke Street victim were self-employed drivers - and friends.

She said Bird had been a taxi driver for 23 years and was divorced with two sons. She described him as a 'real nice man'.

She said: 'We just don't know what's happened. The lad that's been killed was friends with him. They used to stand together having a craic on the rank.

'He was friends with everybody and used to stand and joke on Duke Street.'

She said a female taxi driver working for her had to swerve to avoid Mr Bird's car immediately after the first shooting.

She said: 'He was driving and she saw the gun. She was hysterical and had to pull over and stop. The gun was hanging out of the window.

'We are just numb at the moment. We just want to know what he's done it for. He's such a nice lad.

'One of my drivers was talking to him last night. He was just working as normal and was going to go to Tesco's to get chicken.'

DEBRA CUNNINGHAM,  co-owner of White Line Taxis, said one of her  drivers and his passenger had been shot.

She said the driver had been shot on Coach Road  along with his passenger and taken to hospital.
She said: 'I spoke to Terry this morning over the radio when he came on shift.

'All I have heard since from the police is that he and his passenger were shot  on Coach Road and have been taken to hospital.

'I don't know how they are doing. I am very worried.'

THERESA BAGSHAW, of Whitehaven, said: 'There's talk in the town that one person was shot in the face three times.

'It's absolutely awful. I've never ever heard of anything like this or a gunman  on the loose before.'

A member of staff from Strandz 9 on Duke Street said: 'We heard a loud bang and  one of our customers came running in to say that someone had been shot.

'We went outside to find out what was going on and there was lots of police and  the road was in the process of being blocked.

'We saw a body lying on the floor, it was a taxi driver and he was dead. He had been shot in the head.'

BRIAN EDWARDS described how he came face-to-face with the gunman in the centre of Whitehaven.

Mr Edwards, 67. a joiner was working on flats above a pet shop in Duke Street and was outside collecting tools from his van when he realised something was wrong.

'I heard a bang and thought at first it might be the cannon that they fire at the docks - but it was too early,' he said.

'There were four shots and I looked round to see the taxi driver lying on the pavement.

'Seconds before he had been standing in a doorway having a cigarette just ten feet away from us - he was just blasted in the head by the gunman at point-blank range.  

'He was in a terrible state and I didn't think he could still be alive.

'Then a man carrying a rifle with a large telescopic sight on it ran past just feet away and fired again.

'A second driver was shot but apparently he is not too badly injured. The gunman didn't say anything.'

ALAN HANNAH, 68, said: 'As I turned past the police station, I saw all these officers running out and realised something major was going on so I moved over to the right-hand lane.

'Then a car pulled up on the left, stopping at the lights.

'I saw a man with a large shotgun and his windscreen was smashed.

'I drove through the red light to get into Lowther Street and get out of the way. I got home safely but was very shaken.'

HELEN OWENS, who works at solicitors' practice Brockbank, Cain and Hall on Duke Street in Whitehaven, said one of her colleagues saw a dead man on the street.

She said: 'We heard a couple of gunshots and the police running about.

'One of our secretaries was out at the time and she saw a guy lying dead on the ground covered with a sheet - she saw his trainers sticking out.

'There's police tape across it so we can't see exactly what happened but saw a policeman running across the street.

'We have also heard there was another shooting at Morrisons car park, which is about five minutes away.'

JONNY HOWES, 25, and girlfriend EMMA WISEMAN, 24, both from Leeds were holed upside the Bridge Inn, in Holmbrook, Cumbria, during the shooting.

Mr Howes, a soldier who has served in Afghanistan and Iraq, said they had earlier been hurried inside a shop at Whitehaven.'

'The woman there hurried us inside, but we weren’t entirely sure why,' he said.

'Then a bit later we drove down to the pub, and again people were telling us to hurry and get in. Once we were in we wanted to go outside for some fresh air, but were told that we should stay inside.

'Then we realised what was going on, the landlady had a TV on with the news, everyone was really scared.'

'Emma was really scared but I was okay really, I even told Emma what we would have to do if he came in. I mentioned that we would have to turn the tables on their sides, and then worked out an escape route.'

CORONATION STREET EPISODE FEATURING CHILLING GUN MASSACRE STORYLINE AXED

ITV chiefs last night cancelled an episode of Coronation Street just hours before millions were due to watch a chilling storyline that echoed the Cumbria Massacre.

The post-watershed episode was due to feature convicted killer Tony Gordon, played by Gray O’Brien, embarking on a terrifying gun siege in Weatherfield after escaping from prison.

Along with his henchman Robbie, Tony was set to hold prison guards at gunpoint before making his getaway - and then holding people hostage at the Underworld factory.

During five post-watershed episodes planned for this week, viewers were due to see at least one character die as Tony made it clear that he intended to kill his ex-wife Carla, played by Alison King, and Hayley, played by Julie Hesmondhalgh.

A Coronation Street spokeswoman said: ‘Obviously, there are huge sensitivities given the scale of the tragedy of what has happened in Cumbria.

'We postponed last night’s episode (2) and will make a decision about tonight’s (3) episode today.'

A show source said the soap, watched by more than 10 million fans a week, could even be off air until next week, saying: ‘Everything is up in the air at the moment. It is a terrible coincidence.’