'I might not be going home tonight': Police share footage after officers threatened with 'firearm' in Telford

Attending a run-of-the-mill attempted burglary in Telford town centre turned terrifying for two police officers when the wannabe burglar brandished what they believed to be a gun. 

On Saturday, February 22, at around 10pm, PC Dan Arthur and PC George Oliver responded to a report of a man - now known to be 37-year-old Matthew Sylvester - using a trolley to try and break into a store.

Unbeknownst to the officers, Sylvester was preparing for police arrival. When he learnt police were on their way, he made his way to a nearby trolley park, where he used a jumper to cover his face and forged an object to mimic a handgun.

Footage from the time shows the 37-year-old 'psyching himself up', kicking a trolley and posing with his "gun".

Once he spotted the patrol car enter the car park through the barrier, he immediately charged at the officers, brandishing the imitation firearm at them.

Police quickly made off from Sylvester only to find themselves stuck behind the car park barriers. 

He then went to the passenger side of the car, where PC Oliver was sat, before threatening him through the window and kicking the vehicle.

It was dark at the time of the incident, and both officers could not see clearly what he was holding, so they quickly called for back-up as they believed it to be a firearm.

Speaking after the incident, PC Oliver said: "That's probably the only job I've been to - when he was outside of the window - where I've genuinely thought: 'I might not actually be going home tonight'.

"We've got no reason to think that isn't real."

Sylvester then moved to the back of the car, where he opened the boot. That's when both officers got out of the car, where they were threatened again before a foot chase ensued.

Before he could get out of the car park and onto a nearby housing estate, the two officers tackled him to the floor.

They then removed the jumper covering his face to reveal Matthew Sylvester, who - with 34 previous convictions to his name - is known to police.

Officers quickly established the firearm was in fact a brown paper bag that Sylvester had folded in such a way that it looked like a handgun.

Sylvester, of no fixed abode, was arrested at the scene for a number of offences, including having an imitation firearm and assaulting an emergency worker.

He was later charged with a number of offences including two counts of assaulting an emergency worker, possession of an imitation firearm to cause distress, possession of class A drugs and attempted burglary.

On Wednesday, July 30, Sylvester pled guilty to all charges at Shrewsbury Crown Court halfway through his week-long trial.

The court heard he was licence when the incident occurred having just been released from prison for a "similar offence".

In mitigation, Mr Paul Smith, defending, said Sylvester had been “sleeping rough” as he was homeless after having just left prison and he was having a “delusional period”, likely due to the cocaine he had been taking at the time.

On Friday, August 1, he was sentenced to 16 months for imitating a firearm, and three months for assaulting two emergency workers to run . 

He was also given four months for causing fear and violence and one month for possession of a class A drug (cocaine); both are to run concurrently.