A LETTER claiming that a family whose home was blasted twice with a sawn-off shotgun had quickly recovered from the incident is being handed to the police.

The judge today jailing Shakeal Rehman and Fiesal Khalil at Bradford Crown Court said he was offended that anyone would believe he could be taken in by it.

It was handed into the court building by someone who refused to give their name. Purporting to be the work of the victim of the shooting, it stated: “Me and my family got over this incident very quickly.”

Another letter, said to be written by the man’s wife, asked for leniency for the defendants. The court heard that she had seen the masked gunman firing at her home in Dorset Close, Little Horton, Bradford, after midnight on January 12.

The couple’s three young children were at home at the time.

Recorder Mark McKone KC said the first letter showed that criminals were controlling what the man said. He had been told what to put in it.

The court heard that the victim was so afraid that he refused to attend court to give evidence in the trial.

Recorder McKone asked that the letter be passed to the police, along with any CCTV of the person who handed it in, to see if an investigation could be made into the offence of perverting the course of justice.

He said that the man’s wife must have been approached by people and asked to provide her letter.

Rehman, 34, of Haworth Road, Heaton, Bradford, was jailed for life with a minimum term of eight years.

Khalil, 43, of Whetley Lane, Manningham, Bradford, was jailed for 14 years.

Both were convicted of conspiracy to possess a firearm with intent to endanger life.