People across Liverpool said they were pleased to see "justice finally served" for Olivia Pratt-Korbel.
Thomas Cashman was jailed for life with a minimum term of 42 years for the murder of Olivia, who was shot dead in her own home on Kingsheath Avenue in Dovecot in one of the most horrific crimes in Merseyside's history.
Cashman, 34, of Grenadier Drive in West Derby, was unanimously found guilty of murdering the nine-year-old schoolgirl by a jury on Thursday last week. Cashman was due to return to court this afternoon, Monday April 4, but refused to appear in the dock to hear his sentence.