Crackdown on crossbow sales online

CAMPAIGN: Laura Sugden wants stricter controls. Left, Laura with partner Shane Gilmer who was killed in a crossbow attack by Anthony Lawrence, above

- By Jon Austin

CAMPAIGNERS have urged the Government to go a lot further in its crackdown on crossbows.

It has vowed to impose stricter age controls on online purchases with two-step age verification to stop teenagers buying the weapon on websites.

It is a partial victory for the Sunday Express Crackdown on Crossbows crusade. But the loved ones of victims want stricter controls and have called for a licensing scheme similar to that used for guns.

It came after the latest horror crossbow attack, on the “Otley Run pub crawl” in Headingley, Leeds, eight days ago when two women were seriously injured in what is believed to have been a misogynistic attack.

Suspect Owen Lawrence, 38, died in hospital from a self-inflicted wound and the case is being investigated by counter-terror police.

Our campaign, launched on July 7 last year, exposed how it was possible to buy a potentially deadly crossbow online for as little as £50 simply by sending a picture of a driving licence. The weapon was then delivered to a reporter’s door with no further questions asked.