CHARLIE Broadway has been found guilty of murdering Wilfred Isaacs Senior and the attempted murder of his son Wilfred Isaacs junior.

The jury at Bristol Crown Court returned the verdict earlier today after a six-week trial.

Charlie’s brothers, Billy Broadway and John Broadway, were found not guilty of murder or attempted murder, but were found guilty of manslaughter, following the shooting at Chubbard’s Cross caravan site in Ilton on May 5 this year.

Chard & Ilminster News:

(Wilfred Isaacs)

Joseph Finney and Riley Joe Jones were also both found guilty of unlawfully and maliciously wounding Wilfred Isaacs Senior and assault occasioning actual bodily harm.

Bonnie Wilson was found guilty of assisting John Broadway by driving him away from the location of the shooting.

During the trial, the court was told that Wilfred Isaacs Senior was murdered after a long-running family feud came to boiling point.

Chard & Ilminster News:

(Charlie Broadway)

Bristol Crown Court heard that Charlie Broadway, 23, wounded Wilfred Junior before pointing the gun at Wilfred Isaacs Senior, shooting him twice at close range in front of his partner Pam, two sons and young granddaughter, after a row erupted between the two parties over how 12-year-old girl has acted rudely to Mr Isaacs.

The jury was told Charlie was handed the gun by his younger brother William Broadway, 18, who was instructed to fetch the gun by John, 37, after a dispute broke out between the two families on the evening of May 5.

Mr Mousley said: “It was John’s idea for the Isaacs to be shot, Billy made it possible and Charlie carried it out. They all share responsibility.”

Chard & Ilminster News:

(John Broadway)

The court heard that the Broadway and Isaacs families, who lived in neighbouring plots at Chubbards Cross Caravan Site, had fallen out two years prior to the shooting and were not on speaking terms.

Mr Mousley said there was a “gun culture” in the Broadway family and that in the weeks leading up the shootings gunshots could be heard ringing out around the site.

"The Broadways were associated with shotguns including sawn-offs and they would often fire shotguns on the site ... seemingly for their own pleasure or to intimidate the Isaacs,” he said.

Chard & Ilminster News:

(William Broadway)

The court heard that the shootings on the evening of May 5 followed an earlier violent altercation between Wilfred Senior, Charlie Broadway and two other members of the extended Broadway family Riley Jones and Joseph Finney.

Mr Mousley said: “The shootings were not the first violence in which Charlie had been involved that day.

“Not long before the shootings, him Joseph Finney and Riley Jones had together attacked Wilfred Senior during which assault he was hit on the head with a metal bar.

“When Wilfred Junior went to help his father he too was assaulted and injured by the group of three who were throughout that time acting together.”

Chard & Ilminster News:

(The shotgun used in the shooting)

The court heard that Wilfred Senior’s other son, Barry, then invited a “bare-chested” Charlie Broadway to have a fist-fight with him to sort out their differences.

It was at this stage that John Broadway told Billy Broadway to get a gun. Billy then returned to the scene with a black shotgun.

Mr Mousley said: “Charlie, with John and Billy alongside him, then shot Wilfred Junior, hitting him in the shoulder.

“Within seconds, and after Wilfred Senior asked them why they had done that to his son, Charlie turned the gun on Wilfred Senior and shot him in the stomach.”

Charlie Broadway then pointed the gun at Wilfred's wife Pam and also at Wilfreds granddaughter, telling her to go inside or she would also be shot.

Chard & Ilminster News:

(Chubbard's Cross caravan site in Ilton following the shooting)

Shortly after the shootings, members of the Isaacs family called paramedics, who arrived at the site and found Wilfred Senior lying in a large pool of blood.

He died at the scene from a gunshot wound to the abdomen.

The brothers, from Ilton, Somerset, all fled the scene after the shootings.

Mr Mousley said: “After the shootings Charlie Broadway and John Broadway made off from the scene in separate cars.

“Their sister Bonnie Wilson provided the vehicle for John and went with him knowing and believing what he had been involved in.”

Riley Jones, Joe Finney and Bonnie Wilson have all been bailed until tomorrow when submission will be made by the prosecution and defence for the judge to consider during sentencing.

The judge also said he may sentence the offenders tomorrow.

Following the jury’s verdict, DI Lorna Dallimore from Avon and Somerset Police said: “The shootings were a senseless act which has ultimately destroyed the lives of two families.

“This was an extensive and fast-moving inquiry which involved a wide range of policing resources including the Major Crime Investigation Team, Investigations, Local Policing, Catch and Disrupt teams, Crime Scene Investigators/Managers, Intelligence staff and Communications personnel.

“A large number of partner agencies and professionals have also been involved, especially in the run-up to the trial, including medical, forensic and ballistic experts.

“In the region of 1,260 exhibits were seized, including bloodstained clothing found at the site, and a thorough forensic examination was conducted of the whole site, which took almost three weeks.

“We carried out a meticulous review of the events leading up to the shootings, which uncovered evidence of a serious assault on Wilfred Senior earlier in the day, in which he was punched, kicked and struck with a metal bar.

“My thoughts are with the family and close friends of Wilfred Senior and Wilfred Junior, who’ve had to come to terms with the life-changing impact of this appalling crime. I hope these successful convictions will help them move forward with their lives.

“I’d also like to thank the brave witnesses who gave evidence in this trial, all the officers and staff who worked on this inquiry and our partner agencies for their crucial input and support.”