August 22 marked the 15th anniversary of the shooting of 11-year-old Rhys Jones in the Liverpool suburb of Croxteth. In the same week, the people of Liverpool again witnessed the merciless killing of an innocent child, gunned down in her own home. Nine-year-old Olivia Pratt-Korbel has become one more unnecessary victim of the city’s gun and gang crime.
Media outlets have linked the incident to gang violence. Youth gangs are typically made up of under-18s, but in some cases, older adults involved in organised crime are pulling the strings.
Police have appealed to the public for help identifying those involved, and have made several arrests. Merseyside Police’s Assistant Chief Constable Chris Green credited the public’s “collective ambition to make sure that those individuals in our communities who are engaged in organised crime – the intimidation, the violence, the use of firearms – they’ve got no place in our society.”
