FIVE teenagers - aged between 14 and 17 - have been arrested on suspicion of attempted murder in connection with the shooting of a 17-year-old boy in Prescot.
The arrests come three days after the shooting of a 17-year-old on Station Road, Prescot at around 4.50pm on Monday, January 20.
The victim was taken to hospital with a gun shot injury to his abdomen, and remains in hospital in a stable condition.
A total of four warrants were carried out this morning, Thursday, January 23, in co-ordinated raids in Knowsley and Liverpool areas, resulting in the following arrests:
A 15-year-old boy from Huyton
A 15 -year-old boy from Dovecot
A 17-year-old boy from Dovecot
A 16-year-old boy from Huyton
A 14-year-old boy from Prescot
They have been arrested on suspicion of attempted murder, suspicion of possession of a firearm and possession of a bladed article.
All have now been taken to police stations across Merseyside to be questioned.
Detective Inspector Sabi Kaur from our Firearms Investigation team said: “We want this morning’s action to send out a clear message to those involved in gun crime.
"We are determined to swiftly and decisively target those we suspect of being involved in firearms incidents.
"Our commitment to tackling gun crime is absolute and we’ll keep doing all in our power to disrupt those who create fear in our communities and put members of the public at risk by storing, carrying and using firearms and other weapons.
"The investigation into this incident continues, so I’d appeal to anyone with information who has yet to come forward to do so, including anyone with CCTV, dashcam or other footage.
"We’re grateful to all of those people who have passed information on about this incident. It enables such positive action to be taken, makes communities safer and shows that the vast majority of those who live in areas affected share our resolve to remove those who store, carry and use weapons off the streets."
Anyone with information on gun crime can contact police via @MerPolCC, by calling 101 or the independent charity Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555111 or report online at https://crimestoppers-uk.org/give-information/forms/give-information-anonymously with reference 20000043257.
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