Girl, 9, shot dead in Liverpool named as Olivia Pratt-Korbel

The nine-year-old girl who died after being shot in Liverpool last night has been named by police as Olivia Pratt-Korbel.

Officers were called to reports of a man with a gun at a house down Kingsheath Avenue in Knotty Ash at 10pm last night (August 22nd).

Upon their arrival, officers found the primary school pupil with a gun shot wound to the chest. Olivia was rushed to  Alder Hey hospital in a critical condition, where she later died from her injuries.

Merseyside Police have since launched a murder investigation and a manhunt for the killer, who is still on the run. 

CCTV, forensic and house-to-house enquiries are being carried out by police over the incident.

Police have since confirmed that the gunman was chasing a man he’d targeted. The intended victim pushed his way into the child’s house when her mum Cheryl opened the door.

There, Olivia was caught in the crossfire. Cheryl was shot in the hand, and the man who forced himself into the house was shot in the body.

This man was picked up from the streets in a dark out by friends and taken to the hospital ‘while Olivia lay dying’, said Chief Constable Serena Kennedy. The vehicle they traveled in has now been seized.

Chief Constable Kennedy said Olivia’s family are ‘absolutely devastated, inconsolable and heartbroken’. 

She also pointed out that Olivia was killed on the fifteenth anniversary of the death of Rhys Jones, who was shot by gang members while walking home from football practice. 

Kennedy said: “I know that the murder of Olivia has rocked our communities, who are quite rightly upset and outraged that such an abhorrent crime has occurred here on the streets of Merseyside.

“The people of Liverpool and Merseyside are known for their compassion and pulling together in times of crisis, and I know that our communities, people are wanting to help the family in any way possible.

“This is not the time for anyone who knows who’s responsible for this shooting to remain tight-lipped. It is time for our communities to come together with us and make Merseyside a place where the use of guns on our streets is totally unacceptable, and those who use them are held to account.”

According to BBC News, officers said they are aware of a culture of ‘not grassing to the police’ in the area, and have urged people to ‘get beyond that culture and come forward with information’.