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The officer who granted Plymouth shooter Jake Davison his shotgun and considered him low risk before returning it to him has been led from the inquest in tears.

Davison killed his mother, Maxine Davison, 51, three-year-old Sophie Martyn, her father, Lee, 43, Stephen Washington, 59, and Kate Shepherd, 66, on August 12, 2021.

Nick Stanage, who represents Josh and Zoey Davison, Jake Davison’s siblings and the children of Maxine Davison, asked David Rees whether, in light of what had been presented to the inquest jury, the licensing approach by Devon and Cornwall Police’s firearm licensing unit was “unsafe”, reports Plymouth Live.

The full exchange began with Mr Stanage asking: “Do you agree that the FELU approach to shotgun licensing was not a safe system?”

Mr Rees replied: “Yes”

Mr Stanage asked: “It was a dangerous shambles?”

Mr Rees replied: “Yes.”

Mr Stannage observed: “The only thing that was systematic was the failure to properly assess risk?”

“Yes.”

“In granting and renewing the shotgun the Devon and Cornwall Police firearms licensing staff failed to protect the public?”

“Yes”.

At this point, Mr Arrow halted the proceedings as Mr Rees became overcome with emotion.

He was led in tears from the room by a coroner’s officer and could be heard sobbing as he was led down the corridor.

Earlier in the day, the jury was shown CCTV footage of Davison assaulting two teenagers at Central Park in Plymouth on September 16, 2020, less than a year before the shootings.

The clip shows Davison walking down the path past the skatepark.

As he walks almost past it, he suddenly turns, responding to an insult.

He walks up to the bank, and one of the group flees.

He then heads over to a person sitting and throws a tremendous punch at their head, knocking them off a seat and onto the ground.

He then proceeds to strike the person on the ground at least six more times before grabbing them and throwing them a few feet.

A female approaches him, and he strikes her too before walking off, occasionally looking back and sliding down the steep bank.

Mr Adamson asked Mr Rees that any decision to hand a weapon back to Davison, “in light of” the evidence in the CCTV “would be indefensible… do you agree?”

Mr Rees replied “It would be a serious consideration. It would be… yes, it would be.”

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