Swanley shooting: 28-year-old charged with attempted murder
A 28-year-old man has been charged with attempted murder after a man in his twenties was shot on a footpath in Swanley last week. Connor Heffernan appeared at Medway Magistrates’ Court on Monday, where he was remanded in custody.
Kent Police published details of the charge at 11.35am on Monday 12 October. Alongside attempted murder, Heffernan is charged with possession of a firearm with intent to endanger life. Police describe him as being of no fixed address.
The charges follow a shooting on Acacia Walk in Swanley at around 8.50pm on Thursday 8 October. Emergency services were called to the footpath, which runs on the White Oak side of the town off Birchwood Corner, after reports of a serious assault.
What happened on Acacia Walk
Officers and paramedics who reached the scene found a man in his twenties with injuries consistent with gunshot wounds. He was taken to a hospital in London for treatment. The following day he was described as being in a serious but stable condition, and by Monday he had been discharged.
Kent Police moved quickly in the hours after the shooting. Two men were arrested later on Thursday evening and remained in custody. Two further arrests followed on Friday 9 October. Of the three other men arrested, two have since been released on bail while one remains in custody as the investigation continues.
Detectives have said the people involved are believed to have known one another, and the force is treating the shooting as an isolated incident rather than a wider threat to the public. Officers stressed that a charge is not a conviction and that the investigation remains active.
A rare shooting in a commuter town
Swanley sits on the Kent border with south-east London, a commuter town where gun crime is uncommon. The sight of armed officers and a large police presence on a residential footpath last Thursday evening unsettled many who live nearby, with cordons in place while forensic work was carried out.
Acacia Walk itself is a pedestrian route used by people walking between residential streets and the town’s amenities. It was closed off while officers gathered evidence, and detectives have spent the days since appealing for anyone who was in the area that evening to come forward.
Police investigations into shootings typically involve extensive CCTV trawls, forensic examination of the scene and door-to-door enquiries. In this case the four arrests came within 48 hours of the first 999 call, suggesting detectives identified lines of enquiry early.
What happens next
Heffernan’s remand in custody means he will remain held while the case progresses through the courts. Cases of attempted murder are among the most serious heard in the criminal justice system and, after the magistrates’ court stage, are sent to the Crown Court for trial.
The Crown Prosecution Service will now review the evidence gathered by Kent Police as the case is prepared. No trial date has been set. Reporting restrictions that apply once a case is before the courts mean some details cannot be published until proceedings conclude.
Attempted murder carries a maximum sentence of life imprisonment on conviction. Possession of a firearm with intent to endanger life is likewise treated as one of the most serious firearms offences in English law, reflecting the danger posed to the public whenever a gun is used.
Kent Police is continuing to ask for help from the public. Anyone who was near Acacia Walk on the evening of Thursday 8 October, or who has dashcam, doorbell or mobile phone footage from the area, is urged to contact the force. Information can also be passed anonymously to the independent charity Crimestoppers.
Detectives say the investigation is continuing and have thanked those who have already come forward with information.
