Olivia Pratt-Korbel: Do not protect Liverpool killers, urge police

Anyone who withholds the names of those behind three fatal shootings in Liverpool, including that of nine-year-old Olivia Pratt-Korbel, is “protecting killers”, Merseyside Police have said.

Olivia was fatally shot on Monday after a gunman chased a man, neither of whom had links to her family, into her home.

She was one of four people killed recently on Merseyside amid a rise in gun and knife crimes.

Police said: “You know their names, now we need the names of their murderers.”

Two men arrested on suspicion of Olivia’s murder were bailed on Saturday.

Police said one of the men, aged 36, was recalled to prison after breaching the terms of his licence.

Olivia’s killing was one of four which took place on Merseyside within a matter of days amid a recent rise of gun and knife crimes.

Karen Dempsey, 55, was found stabbed in a pub car park in Kirkby on Monday. Her son has been charged with her murder.

Meanwhile, police are also appealing for information over the killings of Ashley Dale and Sam Rimmer.

Ms Dale, who worked on the environmental health team at Knowsley Council, was fatally shot in her back garden on 21 August.

She was not believed to have been the intended target of the shooting, which led to the arrests of two people.

Police have also detained a fourth person on suspicion of the murder of Mr Rimmer, aged 22, on 16 August.

He was with a group of friends in Lavrock Bank cul-de-sac when they were shot at by riders on two electric bikes, officers said.

Merseyside Police launched a social media campaign on Sunday, saying: “You know their names, now we need the names of their murderers.”

In a video, a voiceover states: “We’ve got parents who’ve lost their children.

“We’ve got a nine-year-old girl who won’t celebrate her 18th birthday. She won’t celebrate her wedding. She won’t have children of her own.

“If you’ve got information and you’re withholding it, you’re protecting the killers.

“We need your information. Provide that information to us and we’ll do the rest.”

Members of Olivia’s family have previously said that speaking up “is not about being a ‘snitch’ or a ‘grass’, it is about finding out who took our baby away from us”.

Police have also said they want more information about a black Audi Q3 which was seen leaving Kingsheath Avenue, Dovecot, after Olivia’s shooting.

The car, which has been seized by officers, was believed to be the same vehicle used to take intended target Joseph Nee, 35, to hospital.

They said they wanted information about its movements in the days before Olivia’s death.

In their overall crackdown on organised crime, police said they had made 170 arrests and seized vehicles, drugs and weapons in the past week.

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