The mum of Olivia Pratt-Korbel broke down as she told detectives "I couldn't shut the door" in the moments before the nine-year-old was shot dead.
A video recording of 46-year-old Cheryl Korbel being interviewed after the shooting was played to a jury at Manchester Crown Court this afternoon, during the trial of Thomas Cashman.
The 34-year-old, of Grenadier Drive in West Derby, denies being the gunman who killed Olivia and who wounded her mum, or any involvement in shooting "intended target" Joseph Nee on Monday, August 22.
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The jury had already heard that Olivia died after Joseph Nee, running for his life, barged into her family home on Kingsheath Avenue, Dovecot, with a gunman in pursuit. A bullet fired by the gunman passed through the door, through Cheryl's hand and into Olivia's chest.
The recording, from a few days after the shooting, showed the mum with her right hand bandaged recalling the distressing details of her daughter's final moments.
She told a detective how she was at home with two neighbours, who had "popped round" for a cup of tea, and her two older children, Ryan Korbel and Chloe Korbel. Olivia was in bed upstairs.
The jury heard how they heard loud bangs outside at around 10pm She said: "We were sat talking and we heard, we weren’t sure whether it was fireworks or gunshots.
“I jumped up and went outside onto the path. I was in the path, to the end of my car. As I looked down the street to me left, I just seen these - I seen one fella had crossed over from the other side of the road like come in front of Rob’s car next door.
“I spotted this lad behind him all in black. I realised at that point it was gunshots, and the other one was running after him. I realised he was running towards me. I ran back in the house.”
Ms Korbel became emotional, and was handed a tissue by the detective.
She said: “I shut the door but the door wasn’t shut, it never caught fully because it was on the catch because we go in each other’s houses.
“We [neighbours] message to say we put the snip on so they can just come in. I tried to keep hold of the door, there was just screaming - screaming to go away.
“I heard the gunshot. I realised, because I felt it, it hit me hand. I couldn’t keep the door shut. With my hand, I couldn’t keep it shut."
She told detectives: "He was trying to push it open and I tried me best to keep it shut"
Ms Korbel recalled hearing Nee shouting "please lad, don't, before hearing a second gunshot."
The jury heard Nee "fell through" the door and was "slumped" in the hallway. Ms Korbel said: "[Olivia] said something, I don't know whether it was 'mum'. But when I turned around she was just sat there still. On the bottom stair. It was the bottom or the second stair.
“I realised, that must have been when, she was hurt because I didn’t know until we got her up to the middle of the stairs. The door flew open. I was huddled over the baby, because I couldn’t lift her by myself because of the arm. I was trying to keep the blood from going everywhere.
“I shouted Ryan to come and help me get her up the stairs, because she was heavy. It was like, she wasn’t helping me. We got her to the middle of the stairs. She was gasping for breath.
“I was screaming at her to stay with me, the ambulance would be there in a minute.”
Ms Korbel told the detective she "knew she was gone" after Olivia was taken to hospital with police.
Cashman denies murder, as well as the attempted murder of Joseph Nee, wounding Ms Korbel with intent and two counts of possession of a firearm with intent to endanger life.
The trial continues.
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