The death of nine-year-old Olivia Pratt-Korbel in Liverpool on Monday is almost beyond belief in its horror. It is one of those moments when a nation unites in fear and revulsion. Police have appealed directly to “the criminal fraternity” in the belief that it too must draw a line at such a killing, even if willing to tolerate or perpetrate other violence.
According to police, Olivia was shot when her mother heard a noise on the street and opened the door to see what was happening. A man attempting to escape a gunman ran into the house – only for his pursuer to open fire regardless, killing Olivia and injuring her mother. The target of the attack was arrested on Wednesday for breach of his licence conditions and returned to prison. Police say several people have already given them a name for the suspected assailant.
Fifteen years to the day before Olivia’s death, in the same city, 11-year-old Rhys Jones was shot dead, while walking home from football practice, by a 16-year-old targeting members of a rival drug gang. To see a case which so closely echoes that tragedy is all the more shocking for Merseyside residents, proud of the real strides made since then. There had not been a gun murder in Merseyside for more than a year until Sam Rimmer, in his early 20s, was shot dead in Toxteth on 16 August. (A man has since been arrested.) But only days later, Ashley Dale, a 28-year-old council worker, was shot dead in the Old Swan area of Liverpool in what police believe was a case of mistaken identity. The death of a woman in her 50s, reportedly stabbed to death as she tried to break up a pub fight in Kirkby on Monday, has added to the anger and incomprehension.
It is as yet unclear whether or how the shootings relate to organised crime. But the anxiety in the city is understandable after this spate of violence. No one can feel immune from a crime of this nature – at once random, in its victim, and callous, in its utter disregard for even the most vulnerable human life. There is also anxiety about the power of organised crime in the region; two years ago, the National Crime Agency identified the increasing influence of gangs from the north-west over the rest of England and Wales. Officers there believe Liverpool has become the leading location for criminals sourcing large-scale imports of drugs and automatic weapons.
Olivia’s death is, by its nature, an extraordinary as well as terrible event and extrapolating from it is difficult. Firearms offences in the UK remain relatively rare. Although there is concern that further violence may result from the last week’s events, Liverpool has overall seen marked improvements. The region had reportedly recorded its lowest level of firearms discharges for two decades. An audit by the police watchdog rated Merseyside officers as “outstanding” at disrupting serious organised crime.
This is, however, a moment to take stock. Emily Spurrell, the Merseyside police and crime commissioner, called for the number of officers to be increased again, but also warned of the need to engage young people “on the cusp of criminality”. In very different ways to Olivia, children across the UK are falling victim to organised crime every day. Many – often those already vulnerable due to family circumstances or school exclusion – have been groomed or coerced into working for “county lines” operations. They are at risk not only of gaining criminal records and going to prison, but of falling prey to violence themselves. As families come under increasing pressure due to the cost of living crisis, and as youth services are further slashed, these problems are only likely to increase.
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