A 31-year-old man has become the third person to be arrested in connection with the murder of beautician Elle Edwards, Merseyside Police said on Thursday.
The 31-year-old man is from Tranmere and has been arrested on suspicion of conspiracy to murder the 26-year-old, who was shot dead outside a pub in Wallesey on Christmas Eve.
Merseyside Police said they have been given more time to question a 30-year-old man, also from Tranmere, who has been arrested on suspicion of Elle’s murder and a 19-year-old woman from Rock Ferry who has been arrested on suspicion of conspiracy to murder.
The latest arrest comes after a police chief renewed an appeal for anyone with information on the Christmas Eve shooting to come forward.
Deputy Chief Constable Ian Critchley, of Merseyside Police, addressed the media on Wednesday outside the Lighthouse pub in Wallasey Village, Wirral, where Ms Edwards was fatally shot shortly before midnight.
Mr Critchley said investigators were working “round the clock” to work out what happened before, during and after the attack.
He said: “We have made great strides forward but I am appealing for further information.”
He said work was ongoing to establish whether the weapon used in the attack, which injured four men, could be connected to any other incidents.
A 28-year-old man from Beechwood in Wirral remained in a critical condition following the shooting, Mr Critchley said on Wednesday.
Asked whether the attack could be linked to an ongoing feud between gangs in Wirral, Mr Critchley said: “We have seen over a number of months some level of escalation here.
“There has been real relentless activity in relation to the arrest of a number of people who are now behind bars or remanded in custody, significant seizures of drugs and weapons.”
He urged families of those involved in organised crime to come forward and said: “You have blood on your hands too if you’re a bystander or if you want to live off the profits being gained.”
Police have said Ms Edwards was not believed to be the intended target of the attack.
Mr Critchley said: “Over the last few years we’ve seen the lowest number of (firearm) discharges in Merseyside but one discharge is one too many and clearly this is not the first time in Merseyside we’ve seen fatalities, particularly those caught up who were in the right place at the right time, the offenders were not - they were doing the wrong things that can’t be tolerated in our society.”
He said officers would work “relentlessly” to find out who was responsible.
He said: “We will not rest until we bring the offenders to justice.”
