It has been blighted by shootings, stabbings and brawls - and MPs and councillors called for Wolverhampton’s Waggon & Horses to be closed for good after a 47-year-old man was injured.
See also: Man badly hurt in pub shooting
The Cannock Road pub has a long and chequered history including gun crime, assaults and also claims of drug abuse and prostitution.
Its future is now in doubt after a man was shot three times in the torso at 5am yesterday.
MP Rob Marris has today called for police action.
The MP, whose constituency includes the Cannock Road, urged police to “look very carefully” at the future of the pub, which used to be part of Banks’s Brewery but is now believed to be privately owned.
Wolverhampton North East MP Ken Purchase echoed his calls.
He said: “This sounds like a very serious incident, and it is up to the police to seriously consider the future of the Waggon and Horses.
“They have the powers to close down an establishment but it is the licensee who is the person who is responsible for keeping good order.”
The latest shooting has shocked the community.
And many people in the area are too frightened to comment on the crime.
One 46-year-old man, who did not want to be named, said: “I wish I could say I’m surprised, but it’s happening all the time.”
“That pub should be closed down, it causes nothing but trouble. There’s always gangs outside.
“All you ever hear about these days is guns and knives. Lots of people are scared around here.”
Councillor Peter O’Neil, who represents Bushbury South and Low Hill, said that the future of the pub should now be considered.
“The incidents in and around this pub should prompt the licensing people to look into the situation,” he said. I find the whole thing very worrying.”
Fellow ward councillor Peter Bilson added: “What we have to do now is work with the police and the whole community to try and put in place measures that will stop this sort of dreadful thing happening in the city.
“It is something we hear of more and more and, along with the issue of knife crime, is one of the bigger concerns in our community.”
The Express & Star was unable to contact the owners of the pub for comment.
Timeline:
* July 2008: Man shot three times at Waggon & Horses
* July 2008: Shots fired near pub in early hours
* March 2008: Dismembered body David Daly dragged from nearby canal
* September 2007: 15-year-old boy slashed across face and another stabbed in the arm near pub
* May 2006: Claims the upstairs of pub being used as a bordello
* March 2005: St Patrick’s Day brawl in pub car park
* March 2005: Reports of heroin addicts injecting in pub car park
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