A pair of men from Bristol have received prison sentences totalling over 14 years for their roles in a shooting incident in Cardiff, where a teenager was injured after being shot through a letterbox with a double-barrelled shotgun.

On June 7, at 19:36, Efekan Karahan, 18, approached a house in Cardiff's Pontprennau area and fired his shotgun twice, striking the 15-year-old victim in the legs; Karahan was subsequently sentenced to 8 years and 4 months in prison.

Karahan's accomplice, Ashley Fernando Corbin, 21, also from Bristol, waited nearby during the shooting and received a 6-year prison sentence for his involvement.

According to evidence presented at Newport Crown Court, the attack was linked to an ongoing feud involving the drugs trade, which included a family member of the teenage victim who suffered non-life-threatening injuries.

Prosecutor Clare Wilkins outlined the events of the incident, stating that the 15-year-old victim was at home caring for his brother when he went downstairs to make a cup of tea, unaware of the danger that awaited him.

As the victim entered the kitchen, he was startled by a loud noise at the front door, which would soon be followed by a more severe and life-threatening event.

Wilkins described how the victim then proceeded to the hallway, where he saw a figure through the glass panel in the front door, immediately followed by the sound of a gunshot and the letterbox being dislodged; a second shot was then fired, striking the victim, who managed to move out of sight.

After being shot, the teenager returned upstairs to check on his brother and soon realised he was bleeding from his leg, prompting him to seek help.

From the bedroom window, the victim spotted Corbin filming Karahan on his phone, with both men wearing balaclavas, a scene that would later be recounted in court.

The court was shown footage from a mobile phone and CCTV, which captured Karahan slipping on the tiled entrance to the house and forcefully hitting the door, an event that the victim had initially mistaken for someone kicking the door.

After firing the shotgun through the letterbox, Karahan was seen tripping over a railing while fleeing the scene, further evidence of the chaotic nature of the incident.

Karahan lost control of the shotgun momentarily before regaining possession of it and making his way across a field to a waiting vehicle, which had been fitted with cloned number plates.

The prosecution argued that the two defendants had travelled from Bristol to Cardiff with the intention of carrying out the attack, which was part of a larger, ongoing feud involving the drugs trade and a family member of the victim.

In the aftermath of the shooting, the victim contacted his older brother, who arrived at the house shortly afterwards and attempted to follow the defendants' vehicle.

The older brother returned home and called an ambulance for his younger brother, who was described in court as being pale and scared following the traumatic event.

A subsequent medical examination revealed that the teenager had suffered injuries from 30 pellets in his left leg, which had ricocheted and caused the harm.

In his defence, Ieuan Callaghan argued that Karahan had been exploited by criminal gangs in Bristol, portraying him as neither a dangerous nor sophisticated criminal.

Meanwhile, Ruth Smith, defending Corbin, suggested that her client had been vulnerable to exploitation by drug gangs since being excluded from school at the age of 13.

Judge Tracey Lloyd-Clarke, in sentencing Karahan, emphasized that he had played a significant role in the incident, stating, "You pulled the trigger, not once but twice, which is not a lesser role," while also describing Corbin as having a pro-criminal attitude and being dangerous.

Leighton Mawer of the Crown Prosecution Service noted that the two defendants had carefully planned their actions, including the use of a firearm, which resulted in serious injuries to the victim.

Mawer added that the discharge of firearms can often have fatal consequences, but fortunately, this incident did not result in the loss of life.

Lt Col Mark Teeton recalled the moment his life was put in danger when Anthony Esan dropped his deceptive facade and unleashed a violent attack, saying, "I knew I was in trouble."

On 23 July 2024, at approximately 18:00 BST, Teeton's routine walk home from Brompton Barracks was disrupted when Esan approached him, requesting to borrow his mobile phone to seek help for his broken-down moped.

Within three minutes, Teeton had suffered a brutal stabbing, which was briefly interrupted when his wife intervened, pushing Esan away as he lunged at her husband.

In an interview with the BBC, Teeton reflected on his ordeal, stating, "I was fortunate to have survived."

Esan, aged 25, received a life sentence with a minimum term of seven years and 162 days at Maidstone Crown Court.

During the sentencing, Mr Justice Picken described the attack as having an "unimaginable horror."

The judge also ruled that Esan would be detained in a hospital for as long as necessary.

Prior to the attack, Esan had conducted online searches for knives, a terrorist attack in West Africa, and TikTok videos depicting knife attacks in other countries.

The court heard that Esan had also searched for information on the 2013 murder of Lee Rigby, referred to as the "Woolwich soldier murdered."

Forensic psychiatrists testified that Esan's actions were more likely driven by psychosis, but that he had intentionally targeted a soldier.

Mr Justice Picken stated, "The attack on Mr Teeton was targeted and deliberate."

Addressing Esan, the judge said, "You intentionally sought out a soldier with the intention of causing fatal harm, as evident from your online search of the Lee Rigby killing."

Eileen Teeton, Mark's wife, recounted how she rushed from their home and confronted the assailant, but Esan's gaze followed her.

She described how Esan then turned his attention back to her husband, at which point she realized the victim was her husband.

After Esan ceased his attack and fled on his moped, Eileen's priority was to get her husband medical attention as quickly as possible.

As Teeton drifted in and out of consciousness, guards from the nearby barracks, local residents, police, and paramedics arrived at the scene.

Teeton was rushed to Kings College Hospital in London, where he underwent emergency surgery, while his wife followed, unsure if he would survive.

Following the sentencing, Teeton stated that Esan's life imprisonment reflected the premeditation and planning that went into the attack against him, a British military officer.

He added, "Knife attacks have far-reaching consequences, affecting not only the victim but also their families and the communities where they occur."

Teeton expressed his empathy, saying, "We feel the pain of every knife attack we see in the news, and our thoughts are always with those affected."

Prior to the attack, Teeton, a 26-year veteran of the military, had completed four tours in Iraq and Afghanistan.

He credited the swift response of paramedics, who arrived by air ambulance, with helping to save his life.

Teeton also acknowledged the role of locals who provided first aid, saying, "The immediate care they provided, along with the basic first aid principles they applied, absolutely saved me."

After a three-week hospital stay, Teeton returned home to find that the military had relocated his family to a more private area.

He then spent five weeks at a rehabilitation centre for injured military personnel near Loughborough before returning to work full-time in January 2025.

In January, Esan pleaded guilty to attempted murder, following several delays in the case due to concerns about his mental health.

Esan had previously attempted to join the British Army on multiple occasions, with his first application submitted in 2020.

In the same year, he was referred to mental health services due to apparent mental health issues and reports of hearing voices.

Esan's mother believed that, given his mental state, he should not have been in the community, according to testimony presented in court.

Eileen Teeton, who sings in a military wives choir, expressed relief that Esan had pleaded guilty, sparing them the ordeal of a trial.

She stated, "We felt a massive sense of relief that he had taken responsibility for his actions and pleaded guilty, sparing us and the jurors from reliving the horrific ordeal."

A recent ruling by a High Court judge has upheld the Equality and Human Rights Commission's stance on guidance regarding toilet and changing room access for transgender individuals in public and workplace settings.

In April of the previous year, the EHRC released interim guidance, which was subsequently withdrawn six months later, stating that single-sex facilities should be restricted to individuals of the same biological sex.

According to the guidance, a transgender woman, who is biologically male but identifies as female, would be expected to utilize a gender-neutral or male facility, rather than female-designated toilets and changing rooms.

Critics argued that the EHRC's guidance for employers, including establishments like hospitals, shops, and restaurants, was flawed and oversimplified.

During the November hearing, the EHRC maintained that its temporary guidance did not infringe upon the human rights of transgender individuals.

Mr Justice Swift denied the Good Law Project's application for a judicial review, but requested further submissions from all parties to determine whether an appeal would be permitted.

The EHRC's withdrawn guidance was issued in the wake of a Supreme Court ruling in April 2025, which clarified that the terms "woman" and "sex" under the 2010 Equality Act refer to biological sex and women.

The EHRC is currently developing a comprehensive code of practice, which is under review by the government.