POLICE hunting two gunmen who tried to blast a man on his doorstep stepped-up their efforts to find the culprits yesterday (Monday).
Officers posted letters appealing for information through residents’ doors 24-hrs after shots were first fired on the doorstep of the house in Edinburgh’s sprawling Gilmerton area.
High-visibility patrols were in operation near to where the semi-detached house was targeted in Fernieside Crescent.
They are also hoping to trawl through any CCTV images that may have captured images of the suspects.
Shocked neighbours said they were woken by the gunfire believed to have come from a shotgun at 5.40am on Saturday.
Two men were later seen running off and the area was sealed off by police overnight while they carried out a fingertip search of the area.
Neighbours say they were left shocked by the early morning drama which comes just months after Martyn (CORR) Barclay, 26, was gunned down and killed in the nearby Inch area on January 17.
Shot-gun
One elderly man, who did not want to be named, said he heard a shotgun had been used in the latest attack.
He said: “Apparently the guy living there came to the door and the two men had a shotgun.
“He dived into the living room but the staircase is meant to be covered in shot pellets.
“It’s a quiet street and you don’t expect that.
“Everyone was shocked but it seems more or less back to normal now.”
Feud
There has been speculation locally linking the attack to an ongoing drug feud in the city.
But yesterday a man at the house targeted by the gunmen strenuously denied he or his family knew any of reason for the attack or of having any involvement in the drugs trade.
The man – who point blank refused to give his name – said: “I don’t know anything about this.
“Me and my family have nothing to do with this.
“I don’t know why it has happened.
“You can listen to rumours going about but the truth is nobody knows what has happened.”
He then told reporters to direct any other inquiries to Lothian & Borders Police.
A piece of solid piece of wood replacing the bullet damaged door was the only obvious sign of anything having happened.
Leads
But police are hopeful a description circulated in the area could flush out new leads.
They said two men in their late teens or early twenties were seeing fleeing the area following the shot at around 5.40am.
They described them as wearing dark clothing with scarves pulled up over their faces to just below the eyes as well as wearing hoods or hats.
A letter circulated to residents from Detective Sergeant Alistair Hutchens tried to reassure locals.
It stated: “This incident would appear to be an isolated incident and enquiries will continue in an effort to trace the person responsible.
“Uniformed police officers will be patrolling the area and will also be available as a point of contact.”
He added that the incident would have caused “great distress” to those living in the area.
And he added: “We would also ask anyone who has private CCTV installed in their homes that may be of assistance to the police dealing with this incident to contact Craigmillar CID.
A police spokesperson said: “We are appealing for anyone who was in the area either before 5.40am or shortly afterwards who might have seen these men to come forward.
“In addition we would ask anyone with any other information that might lead to their identification to contact us.”
