Floral tributes have been left at the front door of a nan gunned down in the entrance to her home in a "targeted" attack.
Jackie Rutter, a nan of five, was shot in the chest in the doorway of her home on Meadowbrook Road, Moreton at around 1.45am on October 30. The 53-year-old was described as "one in a million" and "in the prime of her life".
Speaking to the ECHO earlier this week, her family said they believe she was deliberately targeted by gangland thugs who had been making threats towards her and her family for weeks. The partner of Jackie's daughter told the ECHO: "This is payback. It came out weeks ago that if they couldn't get to who they wanted, they would get to her instead.
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"Jackie wouldn't hurt a fly. She was the sweetest woman you could ever meet. She only weighed five and a half stone - and they shot her point blank. A group of men turned up at the house, kicked down the door and shot her." He added: "To lose a parent is bad enough, but to have her stolen like this is just horrific."
Merseyside Police arrested a 79-year-old man at the scene on suspicion of murder. The man has been released under investigation pending further enquiries.
Police then appealed for anyone who witnessed the incident or who saw a dark coloured vehicle containing three people in the Meadowbrook Road area at the time of the shooting to come forward. The vehicle was later found burnt out on Garden Hey Road and detectives are keen to trace its movements both before and after the incident.
Jackie was described as being "in the prime of her life" when she was cruelly shot in her own home. Her daughter's partner said: "She was a loving mother; she'd do anything for anybody. She'd give you the last coin in her purse. She was the life and soul of the party. She was one in a million.
"She had her struggles. She brought her children up all alone, and this is how she's repaid." Today a number of floral tributes have been left outside the front entrance to her home - barely yards from where she was shot. The front door of the property was closed and there was no sign of any police cordon.
Detective Superintendent Sue Coombs, of Merseyside Police said: "At this time we're appealing for witnesses in that area, anything they have seen or may have been captured on CCTV or dashcam footage, anything of that nature, to come forward to us.
"Clearly there's no place for guns on Merseyside streets. Too often we've seen the devastation is causes to families and communities. We will do everything in our power to make sure we identify the people responsible and bring them to justice. What I would ask is that the community work with us and provide us with whatever information they can to help us with that."
Anyone with information is asked to message @MerPolCC or contact @CrimestoppersUK on 0800 555 111 quoting reference 22000796038.
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