A Croydon teenager who was caught in possession of a shotgun after he was seen on social media posing with two suspected firearms has been jailed.

Carl Brown, 18 of Headcorn Road in Thornton Heath was sentenced at Croydon Crown on Wednesday April 4, after pleading guilty to possession of a firearm and ammunition and possession of heroin and crack cocaine with intent to supply.

Brown was sentenced to a total of three years in custody.

He also received an 18-month sentence, to be served consecutively for breaching a suspended sentence order imposed at Lewes Crown in January.

The court heard a search warrant was conducted by armed officers supporting officers from the Operation Viper team, part of Trident, on Wednesday, 10 January.

Detectives had linked Brown to an Instagram post, which showed a man in a balaclava dancing and rapping while holding two suspected firearms, believed to be a shotgun and a handgun.

When officers arrived at the address at about 12:00hrs, Brown attempted to escape by climbing over neighbouring fences and onto a garden shed.

However, the roof of the shed gave way and he sustained injuries to his legs. He was taken to hospital for treatment and was later taken into custody.

A shortened single-barrelled 12 Bore shotgun was found in a bag near to where he had fallen. Ammunition and a quantity of heroin and crack cocaine were also found after a search of the address.

Detective Constable Peter Whibley, of the Met’s Trident and Area Crime Command, said: “This case demonstrates that we will arrest anyone believed to be in unlawful possession of a firearm.

“We know that social media can be used to incite violence and we will continue to take action against the people that take part in this behaviour. The Met’s Trident teams work tirelessly to remove as many firearms as possible from the streets of London.”