‘I can’t attract women at all’: what about the worst UK shooting in a decade

Jake Davison, 22, killed five people in Plymouth, in southern United Kingdom, last Thursday night.

Davison shot Maxine Davison (his mother, 51), another woman, two men and a 3-year-old girl in a span of six minutes in the Keyham area of ​​the British town.

The young man was licensed to carry firearms, according to Shaun Sawyer, the local police chief.

Police said the incident, the worst mass shooting in the UK since 2010, is not related to terrorism.

In videos on the internet, Davison spoke of feeling “beaten” and “defeated by life”.

How was the attack?

“Incident related to domestic issues”

On Thursday, police received calls from an address on Biddick Drive, the street where the attack occurred, at 6:11 p.m. local time, and armed and unarmed officers arrived within minutes.

Five people, including Davison and his mother, died at the scene and one later died at the hospital.

Agent Sawyer said the weapon used in the shooting was described by witnesses as a “Pump action shotgun”but police did not confirm the detail.

The police chief added that a firearm was recovered from the scene and that officers were not looking for anyone else in connection with the incident.

“We believe it was a domestic incident that spilled onto the streets and took the lives of several people in Plymouth in extraordinarily tragic circumstances,” he added.

After shooting his mother at her home, Davison went out into the street, where he “immediately shot and killed a girl”, identified as Sophie Martyn.

He also shot and killed the girl’s father, 43-year-old Lee Martyn.

Davison then shot another woman, 53, and a man, 33, who remain in the hospital with injuries “not believed to endanger their lives.”

He then went to a park, where he shot 59-year-old Stephen Washington, who died at the scene, and then moved to Henderson Place, where he shot 66-year-old Kate Shepherd, who later died at Derriford Hospital. .

“Eyewitnesses said Davison then shot himself and took his own life,” Sawyer said.

Police are working on 13 crime scenes and said they will examine Davison’s computer hard drive and his social media posts as part of the investigation.

Sawyer indicated that, as of this Friday, “no motive had been identified” for the shooting.

“Involuntary celibates”

In his videos on the internet, Davison said that he was socially isolated, that he had difficulties meeting women and made references to the “incels” or “involuntary celibates”, groups of misogynistic men on the internet who blame women for their sexual failures and they have been linked to various violent acts around the world.

In an 11-minute video, which appears to be the last he posted, Davison said, “I know it’s a movie, but sometimes I like to think I’m the Terminator or something. Despite suffering an almost total failure of the system, it continues trying to fulfill its mission”.

Davison also wrote about mass shootings in a social media post just three weeks ago..

The young man, who claimed to have landed a job as a crane operator, also discussed gun laws on Reddit. He once wrote “there are a lot more guns in Europe and the UK than people think.”

On another Reddit forum, a group for virgins, he complained about being a “virgin” and said, “I can’t attract women at all.”

Davison had also posted hateful complaints online about single mothers and his own mother in particular, calling her “vile, dysfunctional and chaotic”.

YouTube and Facebook confirmed that Davison’s accounts were removed for violating their policies.

Marianna Spring Analysis

Disinformation and Social Media Correspondent

On his now-deleted YouTube account, Davison lamented his personal appearance, talked about feeling isolated and his difficulties meeting women.

Sometimes he would launch into tirades using terms coined by “involuntary celibates,” known as “incels”.

This internet subculture encourages men to blame women for their own dissatisfaction with appearance, romantic relationships, and their lives, and men who do manage to have relationships with them.

Davison referred to these men as “Chads” in his videos. Comparisons with them do not focus only on personality or self-confidence, but some “incels” also believe that they are genetically disadvantaged compared to these men.

He also used other phrases tied to the incel community, including “the black pill overdose”.

The “black pill” mentality essentially consists of the belief that if you are not physically attractive, you do not deserve love and you are destined to be more unhappy each time you seek it and to fail.

In the scene

Andrea Ormsby, BBC South West Correspondent

“Shock” is the word I heard over and over from the local people.

I have spoken with several who live here and they have all told me: “It could have been me”.

A father told me that he was with his little girl in his car when he saw people waving their arms at him on the highway he was about to take.

They told him: “Don’t come, there is an attacker, go.”

Other people said their phones were ringing non-stop with calls from loved ones to check that they were safe.

Keyham is normally a quiet community, but one parish priest said everything felt particularly calm this Friday as people reflect on what happened.

Tribute to the victims

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson tweeted: “My thoughts go out to the friends and family of those who lost their lives and to all those affected by the tragic incident in Plymouth last night. I thank the emergency services for their response”.

Plymouth City Council said the city’s flags are flown at half mast, while Smeaton’s Tower in Plymouth was lit Friday night in memory of the victims.

Authorities asked people to stay home and follow police advice as they responded to the emergency.

British Defense Secretary Ben Wallace said he had spoken to Home Secretary Priti Patel and assured her that the situation was “under control”.

Plymouth City Council Leader Nick Kelly said nothing in his “life memory” compares to the shooting.

“Today our city is in mourning and my heart goes out to all those who are directly affected by this incident,” he said.

The Bishop of Plymouth, the Rev. Nick McKinnel, said the city was left “with a legacy of pain and trauma, as well as great anxiety” that would “affect people’s lives forever.”

Devon and Cornwall Police and Criminal Commissioner Alison Hernandez said many in the community “would have witnessed what happened, right in front of their eyes, where they live.”

The last mass shooting in the UK occurred in 2010 when taxi driver Derrick Bird killed 12 people in Cumbria, in the north-west of the country.