Young woman shot to death and three men wounded at pub in Merseyside, in 'heartbreaking' Christmas Eve attack

25 December 2022, 07:40 | Updated: 25 December 2022, 10:21

A woman was killed in a shooting at a pub near Liverpool on Christmas Eve.

Merseyside Police said officers were called to the Lighthouse Inn in Wallasey in Merseyside at around 11.50pm on Saturday, after getting reports of gunshots.

A young woman was taken to hospital with an injury consistent with a gunshot wound and later died, police said.

Three men were also taken to hospital with gunshot wounds and a number of others were injured in the incident.

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Detective Superintendent David McCaughrean said: "This investigation is in the very early stages and we understand that this is a truly shocking and devastating incident that has happened just before Christmas Day in a busy venue full of young people.

"We have a number of officers at Wallasey Village who are carrying out extensive enquiries to understand exactly what has taken place and take immediate action.

"A woman has tragically lost her life at Christmas whilst several people are being treated in hospital and our thoughts and condolences are with the victim's family.

"I would ask anyone who was in the Lighthouse in Wallasey Village last night who witnessed the incident or has mobile or CCTV footage of what happened to contact us as a matter of urgency as they may have information which is vital to our investigation.

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"We believe that the gunman left the pub car park in a dark coloured vehicle - possibly a dark coloured Mercedes shortly after the shooting and we are keen to hear from anyone who saw this to contact us immediately."

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Wallasey MP Dame Angela Eagle has appealed for anyone with information on the fatal shooting to contact police.

She tweeted: "This is heartbreaking news - My thoughts are with the family of the woman who has died & those who are injured. Anyone with any information please tell the police."

Jeffrey Hughes, minister of the United Reformed Church in Wallasey Village, said news of the fatal shooting will have come as a shock to people in the area.

He told the PA news agency: "Wallasey Village is a fairly lively area, it's a nice part of Wallasey, it's a nice part of the north end of the Wirral.

"We've got a lot of young people, families in that area. The Lighthouse is central in that community.

"It's a shock. When we first heard the news this morning that there'd been a shooting in Wallasey, Wallasey Village is the last place you would think of."

He said trying to find words of hope in "such a terrible situation" is challenging and acknowledged that the Christmas morning service would now not be "as much a celebration as it was going to be".

He said such violence "shows us that even though we celebrate Christmas, we're still very far from those ideals (of peace) as a society".

Anyone with information is asked to direct message @MerPolCC or contact Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111 quoting log 1044 of Saturday 24 December.