Three men have been jailed for a total of 28 years for firearm offences after police found a shortened rifle in holdall.

Jake Hill, Jordan Miranda and Marcus Benjamin-Williamson all pleaded guilty at a hearing last month to charges relating to the incident which happened in July 2016.

They were jailed at Croydon Crown Court on Thursday, March 9.

The court heard how Hill, 26, of no fixed address, was subject to a proactive operation and was under observation at the time by Trident and Area Crime Command detectives.

On the afternoon of July 28, Hill travelled to Norbury station, where he was seen to get into the front passenger side of a blue Ford Focus in nearby Acacia Road.

The driver of the car was identified by police as Miranda, of Dovercourt Avenue, Thornton Heath.

When Hill got out of the car he was seen to be carrying a large blue holdall as he walked back towards London Road and the station.

He was stopped by armed officers in Norbury Avenue at 3.55pm.

Asked what the bag contained he told police “I don’t know a friend asked me to pick it up, I don’t know what’s in it.”

A search of this bag revealed it contained a shortened rifle and he was subsequently arrested for possession of a firearm with intent to endanger life.

Hill was sentenced to seven years and two months in prison after pleading guilty to purchasing a firearm.

Following the arrest of Hill, firearms officers attended Acacia Road stopped the Ford Focus and Miranda was detained and arrested on suspicion of firearms offences.

Following a lengthy investigation, Benjamin-Williamson was identified as the organiser of the offence. He absconded from prison on January 10.

He was found to have carried out all phone contact regarding the supply and purchase of the gun. He was arrested on July 15 last year.

Miranda was sentenced to seven years and six months imprisonment after pleading guilty to conspiracy to supply a firearm and ammunition.

Benjamin-Williamson was sentenced to 14 years imprisonment after being found guilty of conspiracy to supply a firearm and ammunition.

A fourth man, Barrington Laing, 19, of Tedder Road, Croydon, was found not guilty of conspiracy to supply a firearm and ammunition on February 20.

Detective Constable Sarah Wykes, the investigating officer for the Trident and Area Crime Command said: "I am pleased at the custodial sentences that have been imposed on Hill, Benjamin-Williamson and Miranda.

“You just have to read some of the tragic cases where firearms have been used to know how much of an impact they have on families and on communities as a whole.

“We remain committed to ridding these dangerous weapons from the streets of London.

“To those who are actively involved in the distribution and carrying of these weapons they should be aware that we are actively carrying out operations to catch offenders."