'You've wrecked her life,' judge tells gunman who opened fire at busy Rotherham pub and shot landlady
“You have wrecked her life,” a judge told an exceptionally dangerous man who opened fire at a busy pub, shooting a landlady in the crossfire and leaving her with life-changing injuries.
Scores of punters were present in the Red Lion pub on High Street, Wath-upon-Dearne, Rotherham, enjoying Friday night drinks when Oliver Corney arrived on the scene, with a gun secreted inside his long leather jacket.
Intent on carrying out a ‘revenge’ shooting on a man present in the pub, Corney took out the gun and fired three bullets in quick succession into the yard.
The pub’s landlady, Bonita Page, was present, and had shut the gates to the pub in a bid to ‘prevent disorder’ and protect those present.
This followed an earlier argument which had ‘erupted’ at the pub, involving associates of Corney, of Cricket Inn Road, Wybourn, Sheffield, and the man he intended to shoot, which Sheffield Crown Court heard was ’almost certainly connected to drugs’.
Ms Page - who was present in court for the hearing - was continuing in her efforts to stop further skirmishes and to keep those who might cause them out of the pub, when she was hit by the third bullet.
The bullet went ‘right through her leg,’ with ‘exceptionally serious’ consequences, which continue to ripple through her life - over a year on from the shooting on June 28, 2024.
“You missed the individual at whom you were aiming and shot a very brave woman – Mrs Bonita Page…She is deserving of the highest praise for her bravery,” The Recorder of Sheffield, Judge Jeremy Richardson KC, told Corney during a hearing on July 11, 2025.
He suggested Corney’s reckless actions could easily have resulted in others present being ‘maimed’.
As cowardly Corney fled the scene, Ms Page’s daughter sought to treat the gunshot wound as they waited for the emergency services to arrive.
Detailing the ‘life-changing’ and continuing consequences of the shooting upon Ms Page, Judge Richardson continued: “Mrs Page was seriously injured. She was taken to the Major Trauma Department of the Northern General Hospital in Sheffield where an entry and exit wound was found relating to the gunshot through her leg.
“This caused muscle damage and required surgery to repair that damage. Fortunately, the route of the bullet through her leg missed major arteries. The consultant surgeon has reported that recovery from such muscular damage can be unpredictable.
“The consequences of this for Mrs Page have been exceptionally serious. She was an active member of the community where she lived. She enjoyed being the licensee of the public house, but she has been forced to relinquish that role due to her injuries. It was a lucrative career. She is now in receipt of public assistance, and her husband has been forced to give up his work to care for her.”
In addition to her physical injuries, Mrs Page has now been diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder, is said to be a shadow of her former self, and is tormented by ‘heightened anxiety’ which leads to her feeling ‘very scared during ordinary aspects of life’.
The shooting has also had far-reaching consequences for the pub’s other staff members, who were not only present when Corney opened fire, but have also lost their jobs after Ms Page was forced to give up her role as licensee. The loss of jobs is down to the new managers bringing their own staff with them, the court heard.
Following the shooting, Corney stashed the firearm - which has still never been recovered - before instructing his partner to dispose of his clothing in an unsuccessful ‘endeavour to mask’ what he had done.
The sentencing hearing heard that Corney was not present at the pub for the earlier incident, but after hearing about it, ‘fetched his firearm’ before rushing over to carry out the shooting, which, said Judge Richardson, featured an ‘element of revenge’.
Jailing Corney for 11 years, nine months, Judge Richardson told him he had ‘narrowly avoided a life sentence’.
He continued: “It must be made clear at the outset of these sentencing remarks that those who open fire with a gun aiming at another person in a public place intending very serious injury, must expect, and will receive, long prison sentences.
“Such conduct is exceptionally serious.”
The court heard how Corney, aged 35, has an extensive criminal record, which includes two previous firearm and weapon offences, seven sexual offences, along with further entries for matters including dishonesty, drug offences, harassment and breach of court orders.
In mitigation, the court heard how Corney’s earlier life has been ‘marinaded in emotional instability, mental disorder and deprivation’.
This included a childhood in which he endured ‘emotional neglect’.
Judge Richardson told him: “You have an Emotionally Unstable Personality Disorder whereby you act impulsively and with aggression due to your distorted thinking.
“You are highly dangerous and pose dangers to yourself and, most certainly, to others.”
He told the court that the protection of the public was of ‘paramount’ concern, and also handed Corney the maximum extended licence of five years, bringing his total sentence to one of 16 years, nine months.
As Corney was led out of court to begin his sentence, he shouted over to the public gallery: “I’m sorry Ms Page’.
Judge Richardson told the court Ms Page is now due to receive a bravery award from South Yorkshire’s High Sheriff, after he recommended she be bestowed with the honour, at a later date.
He invited Ms Page and her family, who attended court with her, to meet with him in his public chambers following the court hearing.