A man on trial accused of attempted murder says he was stabbed, shot at and run over in a dispute between two groups of feuding former friends.
Rio Jones shot an innocent 15-year-old girl (Girl A) in the neck as he fired six bullets at another man, whom he also struck, as he chased him through the streets of Toxteth on an electric bike. The 19-year-old defendant today took to the stand to give his evidence, and told the jury that the events followed a schism in his friendship circle after one of its members was murdered.
Liverpool Crown Court heard that he had known the "target" of his shooting, who cannot be named for legal reasons and will instead be referred to as Male A by the ECHO, "since he was young". The 20-year-old was "just from the area", a "friend of a friend".
READ MORE: Diners and staff ran to help teen who died after collapsing in Browns in Liverpool ONE
Jones, who was flanked by three prison guards at all times in the witness box, said: "He wasn't a close friend, I used to go out with friends and he used to be there. It was quite a large circle."
But this group became divided after an unnamed friend was murdered in 2017. The teenager said: "I think it was about 2017 when one of my friends was murdered - the group of friends split into two.
"It caused problems in the area. Certain friends fell out with certain people."
Jones said he did not fall out with anyone personally, but Male A ended "on the other side" from him. He told the court: "I was one group of friends, he was the other group of friends.
"There was no problems between us, but we never spoke. I would see him on the street and it would by a hi and bye."
But Jones and his family were then on the end of a series of attacks. He said: "My mum's car got smashed up, my dad's van got burned, my house was shot up.
"I used to get chased occasionally. I used to get chased with knives, guns - at one point someone fired a gun when they was chasing me."
Jones believed that "someone who was in the other group of friends" was responsible for these incidents, at one stage receiving messages from a "fake Instagram account" telling him so. They also included an arson attack at his home on Jermyn Street - which saw the front door damaged by fire - on January 12 2019, six days before his father's work van was set ablaze.
Then, on November 21 2019, a firearm was discharged outside his address when the defendant was not home. Ten 9mm casings were found in the road, with nine bullet holes left in the front window.
Jones would be chased in the street "before and after" these shots were fired. He said: "A group of people was chasing me and shouting stuff.
"Sometimes it would be in cars, sometimes it would be on foot, sometimes it would be on bikes. Another incident happened when I was stabbed."
This stabbing occurred on High Park Street on October 24 last year, when Jones was knifed in the chest and leg as he and a female friend sat in a car. He suffered a "small puncture wound" to his upper thigh and a "slash wound" to the hand, but sustained no injuries to his torso as he was wearing body armour.
The teen said: "Previously, I'd been stabbed twice before that as well. When I go out, I'm a bit cautious because of the area and things that happen in the area.
"There was a car - it was parked up at the side of the road, one person got out. They come to the side of the car, they tried to get the keys.
"They come round to my side, and that's when they stabbed me. I tried to kick them away through the window, and I was stabbed in the leg."
On another occasion, Jones was chased and hit by a car while walking his dog - suffering a broken foot. He added: "They've got balaclavas on and they're chasing me - sometimes there was knives, and on one occasion there was a gun.
"They'd be chasing after me and my friends. I managed to get away. I heard the bangs. They weren't aiming at me.
"My friend had an altercation with someone from the other group. When they come, I believed they were aiming to shoot him and not me."
On the morning of March 1, the day on which Male A and Girl A were shot, Jones was seen on CCTV leaving his home in an Audi. He stated that this was his girlfriend's car, and he was returning the vehicle to her address.
But, as he did so, he was chased by two men on electric bikes on Lodge Lane. But Jones said he "managed to get away".
Shortly before 4.30pm, a friend knocked on his door and they went out - leaving his phone charging at home. They went to Crown Street Park and smoked cannabis, at which point he was given a loaded handgun by a man who he refused to name.
Jones, who put the firearm in his coat pocket, said: "We were just going to drive round the area. If we bumped into someone associated with the other group we were going to chase them - I was going to pull it out so they got scared and then chase them."
He and three friends left the park on their bikes, although one had left the group before they spotted Male A on Upper Warwick Street. The man was said to have shouted "come here you p****" at them, with Jones and one other rider then chasing him up the road.
The latter turned off down Claribel Street before Jones opened fire near to the bus stop at the junction with Pomfrett Street. He said he realised it was Male A he was pursuing when he drew alongside him, recognising his eyes through the balaclava he was wearing.
Asked why he had fired the gun, Jones said: "When I pulled the gun out, I panicked and I just started shooting the gun. I was scared.
"The whole situation, I never done that before. When I pulled the gun out, I was scared and I just started shooting.
"I was aiming in front of him. I don't know how far in front.
"He wasn't far, he was close. I don't know how far.
"I didn't think about it, I just done it. At the time, I didn't know how many times I fired it - I just pressed it, then that was it."
Afterwards, Jones stashed the firearm in bushes in Sefton Park. He then went to his friend's house, where he changed his clothing and messaged the man who had given him the gun via social media using the mate's iPad.
Under instruction, he moved the weapon to a different location then returned home at 6.45pm - 15 minutes before he was required to return home by a court ordered curfew. The following day, Jones said that he and his girlfriend travelled to Sheffield "to pick up his mum".
He claimed to have realised he had lost his phone when he arrived back in Liverpool. However, records showed that the device was last used at around 6.45pm - after the time he stated he had returned from Yorkshire.
Police attended his address shortly after 11pm on March 3 and arrested Jones, who was in his bedroom, on suspicion of attempted murder. He said of this: "I didn't know it was that serious.
"They said it was attempted murder, and I weren't intending to hurt no-one or murder no-one. When they said that, I was a bit shocked."
Under cross-examination by prosecution barrister David Temkin, Jones denied that he and Male A were enemies. He claimed that he did not ask for a gun from the man who supplied it to him, and was not required to pay to use the firearm.
Mr Temkin referred to Jones' initial defence case upon pleaded not guilty to a string of charges before the same court in April this year. The prosecutor said he "denied in the clearest terms that he was the gunman", which he now concedes.
He added: "You wanted to mislead the police, didn't you? You wanted to mislead the prosecution team, and you must have wanted to mislead the judge as well.
"You even misled your own defence team didn't you, because you were telling them you were not the gunman when you were the gunman? You have lied to just about everybody in the court process.
"You maintained those lies, you kept them going, for a very long time didn't you? Not just days, not just weeks, but you kept those lies going for months - all the way up, in fact, to last week."
Mr Temkin said Jones' "complete change of stance" came when he "realised the evidence was completely overwhelming", and his latest account was "yet another lie, designed to mislead all of us". He said the defendant had aimed at Male A's upper body "because you intended to kill him".
The prosecutor asked: "You pulled the trigger six times, didn't you? There was nothing accidental about you pulling the trigger six times.
"This was a determined effort to kill. Why the need to use six bullets?"
Jones responded: "I didn't mean to use six bullets. It was just a panic.
"I panicked and I pressed the gun. I didn't even know I fired six shots."
Mr Temkin said: "If your intention was to cause fear, you had already done that by chasing him. Didn't you think he was frightened at that stage?"
Jones replied: "It all happened too fast. As soon as I seen him, I pulled out the gun and it just happened."
One of the bullets fired passed through the plastic sheeting of the bus stop and struck Girl A in the neck, travelling through her body and out of her chest. She suffered serious injuries including lung damage and three fractured vertebrae.
Meanwhile, Male A was hit in his right wrist by another of the shots. He was subsequently taken to hospital and underwent surgery.
Jones - who is defending by Stanley Reiz KC - denies attempted murder and two counts of inflicting grievous bodily harm with intent, but has pleaded guilty to possession of a firearm with intent to endanger life. The trial, before the Honorary Recorder of Liverpool Judge Andrew Menary KC, continues.
READ NEXT: EncroChat dealer 'boredgiraffe' made 'vast profits' trafficking multi-kilos of drugs
Man who threw tin of dog food at girlfriend rants 'this is all lies' in court
'Despicable' paedophile discussed eating children in rape cellar
Murderer, ex-LFC player and teacher among 19 criminals jailed this week
Pervert laughed when confronted after sexually assaulting girl in the street
