On an unsuspecting weekend in July 2010 news that police had launched a manhunt after a shooting in the early hours of the morning reached Echo HQ.
What ensued was a week-long search for the gunman whose name would cross the lips of millions – Raoul Moat.
The Echo's newsroom turned its attention to the hunt for Moat as police continuted looking for him across the region.
Read more: The Hunt for Raoul Moat: Full cast list and how to watch
With a new dramatisation of the manhunt starting on ITV on Sunday (April 16) we've taken a look back through our archives at how the Echo reported on Raoul Moat.
News breaks of the shootings
The Northern Echo carried news of the manhunt on its front page on Monday July 5, 2010; the paper’s first edition since news of the shootings broke.
That Saturday (July 3, 2010) at 2.40am the new boyfriend of Moat’s ex Samantha Stobbart, 22, was shot dead outside a home in the Scafell area of Birtley, Gateshead. Shots were also fired through the living room window leaving Miss Stobbart, who was hit twice, in a critical condition.
Two men were believed to have been taken hostage by Moat, 37, around the time of the shooting, but a news blackout was put in place due to a significant risk to the lives of the men, and police did not reveal this news until a press conference the following Tuesday.
Later than day police announced they were trying to trace Moat in connection with the shootings.
That Sunday (July 4, 2010) a police officer PC David Rathband, a married father-of-two from Cramlington, Northumberland, was shot in an unprovoked attack at the roundabout between the A1 and A69 in Newcastle.
To get more stories direct to your email basket go here
Police later revealed that Moat called 999 about 12 minutes before the attack, threatening to shoot a police officer, and rang back 50 minutes after the shooting. Police appealed to him: “This must stop now”.
A week of front pages
The Echo continued to “splash” the manhunt on our front page throughout the week as police continued their search.
Echo reporter visits town at the centre of the manhunt
Echo reporter Gavin Engelbrect visited Rothbury in Northumberland which became the centre of the Moat manhunt.
Armed police sealed off roads and began a dangerous sweep of the town. Terrified residents were ordered indoors as police threw up a two-mile exclusion zone - allowing nobody in or out.
Police marksmen were deployed to defend children in Dr Thomlinson C of E Middle School and teachers were ordered to keep doors and windows locked.
Read more: ITV begins filming for brand new drama on North East horror killer Raoul Moat
A group of children from Tanfield Lea Community Primary School, near Stanley, County Durham, who were on a field trip to Cragside were marooned in the National Trust building and ten customers and a child were locked inside a newsagents.
‘Killer shot’
As the manhunt drew to a close and police closed in on Moat during a Friday (July 9, 2010) night stand-off in Rothbury the clock was ticking on the Echo’s deadline.
Our editor at the time Peter Barron described that night as one he would “never forget” as editor.
He decided, after leading the front page for five consecutive days on the hunt for killer Raoul Moat, it was time for a change.
Read next:
- Discount retailer B&M announces closure of busy store within weeks - here's where
- 'I thought I was going to die': Victim talks of being slashed with machete by stepdad
- Woman furious at being stripped of driving licence after GP fills form out wrongly
Get more from The Northern Echo with a Premium Plus digital subscription from as little as only £1.50 a week. Click here
There was still no sign of Moat and it seemed the saga might go on for weeks. It was decided to “splash” on County Durham antiques dealer Raymond Scott being found guilty of illegally possessing Shakespeare's First Folio.
That is until 7.30pm, when news began to break that Raoul Moat had finally been cornered in Rothbury, and a night of high drama was beginning.
The paper was hastily rescheduled, with the first five pages devoted to the Rothbury stand-off.
A photograph Barron described as “one of the best news photographs I can remember” showing police marksmen negotiating with Moat, came through. It was good enough to fill the whole of the front page, with the headline: "End Game".
Questions were bound to be asked about how the photographer had breached the police cordon to get so close, but any arguments would have to wait. The picture was too good not to be used at its maximum size.
At 1am, Moat was still cornered, with his own gun to his head, and it seemed that the stalemate might go on all night. That was until news broke that a shot had been fired and a new front page was rapidly put together, with the headline: “Killer shot”.
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules hereLast Updated:
Report this comment Cancel