Residents of a block of flats in Wavertree believe an eruption of violence in the area is linked to fall-outs between young, reckless drug dealers.
"The kids round here, they just don't care" was the verdict of one man the morning after an unknown assailant fired gunshots at a window, directly opposite where children play on Picton Playground. Witnesses saw four masked men on scooters and bikes chasing each other along Mill Lane an hour before the shot was fired at 7.10pm on Tuesday (June 7).
The gunman opened fire a few streets down from two other shootings, on April 21 and 25, one in which a woman was shot in the leg on Deverell Grove and the second where bullets damaged a window in Birch Grove, both off Mill Lane.
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For Sarah Robinson, 32, a resident in a house close to the shooting, the incident shook her view of the area as relatively safe. She said: "I've lived here for seven or eight years, I love it here. It's quite a high traffic area so there's always people coming and going but there doesn't usually seem to be any trouble out of the ordinary.
"It's really surprised me to hear about the shooting. You never believe something like this is going to happen so close to home."
However, for residents in the flats only yards from Sarah's front door, the picture was starkly different.
Two residents living in flats on Mill Lane said they had personally, and regularly, witnessed drug dealing in the housing association properties opposite the playground. One told the ECHO: "It's got to the point where it's normal round here if you hear gunshots or a bike, it doesn't even surprise me to hear gunshots anymore. Recently it has got pretty terrible, it has to be about territory for selling drugs.
"You can see the younger ones selling drugs round here, and there are more senior people living around these blocks that they go to, to restock or whatever. I have seen them passing packages over personally, sometimes they don't think you can see them but I don't think they'd care."
The other said: "From what I have seen there are probably around two groups operating here, you see them hanging round together. There are a lot of vulnerable people living here and it is a constant battle to get something done about it. You sometimes see the [Merseyside Police] fugitive team round here but nothing seems to get done about the drugs."
The resident was in a communal area looking out onto Mill Lane last night when the shooting occurred. They said: "I heard the engines, and then I saw scrambler type bikes going past. I saw two bikes.
"A short time later they came back the other way and I heard a 'pop'. I thought it was like the engine back-firing or something but a neighbour called me and she said 'oh my god there has been a shooting'."
The ECHO spoke to other long-time residents who were reluctant to go into details, but hinted that the situation in the streets off Mill Lane was deteriorating and believed the incidents related to gang-rivalry. One man said: "It's kids, they all know each other and they don't care. Who knows what it is about but you could just look at someone funny and that's it."
Another said: "I recently moved here and it was the biggest mistake of my life. These gangs round here don't care." In the streets behind the housing association owned flats facing Mill Lane, there was also concern.
One man told the ECHO: "As a parent, it is a concern. We don't see drug dealing day-to-day but my wife had a scooter pinched a couple of months ago and I assume that's what they use it for.
"My children are primary school age but they are not stupid. Last night was crazy, I came home from work and the helicopter was up and the police had cordoned off the road. I was saying to my wife last night should I call 111 and just complain about the situation here, but she said 'what's the point', nothing will happen.
"My concern is you only seem to see the police round here after something like this [the shooting] happens."
Police say it is believed at this stage that the shooting was targeted. On Wednesday the force announced an 18-year-old man from Wavertree had been arrested on suspicion of possession of a section 5 firearm and possession of a class B drug (cannabis).
Detective Inspector Cat Walsh said: “We are making good progress in this investigation, and have made an arrest, but we continue to urge anyone who was in the area after 6pm on Tuesday and may have witnessed anything suspicious at all to come forward.
“We are also appealing to anyone who has CCTV, dashcam or footage on any other devices to take the time to check them to see if they have captured footage that could help us find those responsible. It is completely reckless to fire a gun in a residential street such as this, and we are fortunate that no-one was hurt.
“Member of our communities simply want to live their lives free from the fear of this happening on their doorstep, and we are committed to stopping anyone who risks their safety by carrying and using weapons."
Anyone with any CCTV, dashcam or doorbell footage or information about this incident please direct message Merseyside Police via the social media desk on Twitter @MerPolCC or Facebook ‘Merseyside Police Contact Centre’ quoting incident reference 22000392835.
You can also contact the independent charity Crimestoppers anonymously, on 0800 555 111 or via their online form here.
