Man, 49, is arrested after shooter opened fire outside Liverpool Showcase cinema packed with families watching new Wonka film
Published: 06:53, 4 January 2024 | Updated: 11:22, 4 January 2024
Video footage shows the dramatic moment armed police officers rushed to the Showcase cinema in Liverpool on Wednesday night after a gunman opened fire outside a packed Liverpool cinema filled with families.
A 49-year-old man has been arrested after Merseyside Police[2] declared a major incident following reports of shots being fired at three separate locations on Wednesday night. No one was injured in any of the incidents.
The man from Fazakerley was taken into custody by armed response officers shortly before 5am, as officers cordoned off the property.
Shocked residents of the city filmed police vehicles rushing to the scene last night as they surrounded the venue, after the man fired a series of shots into the air.
Police said the suspect was arrested on suspicion of possession of a Section 1 firearm with intent to endanger life and robbery at 4.46am and remains at a police station in Merseyside.
Officers were first called to a newsagents in Norris Green, Liverpool, at 8.30pm last night to reports that a man had entered the shop and threatened the store assistant
Armed police swooped in and started escorting families back to their cars at the Showcase Cinema in Norris Green, Liverpool, around 9pm on Wednesday
Map showing the Showcase Cinema and nearby Sangha Newsagents in Liverpool where the incidents happened
When officers attended the property in Fazakerley, the man became ‘aggressive and a Taser was deployed’, a police spokesperson said.
Officers were first called to a newsagents in Norris Green, Liverpool, at 8.30pm last night to reports that a man had entered the shop and threatened the store assistant.
He is said to have demanded cash before firing a gun and leaving the store empty handed. The staff member was unharmed but left ‘extremely distressed’ by the incident.
Video footage, believed to be of the incident at the News and Booze store (known locally as Sangha newsagents) on Lower House Lane, showed a man dressed in an oversized coat and flipflops appearing to fire a single shot.
Police then received a report at 8.50pm that shots had been fired outside the Showcase Cinema on Stonedale retail park in Croxteth.
A man allegedly entered the cinema complex and threatened two members of staff in the foyer while armed with a gun.
He then left the building and fired a number of shots into the air before fleeing in a car.
Families inside the cinema were plunged into lockdown as armed police were scrambled to the scene, before being evacuated.
Around 90 minutes later, gun shots were heard at a property on Malpas Road, police said.
No one was injured in any of the incidents.
Craig Moorhead, 35, from Garston, had been watching Wonka with his daughter and her friend, both 14, when shots were reportedly fired at the cinema.
Mr Moorhead heard police at the back of the cinema as the film ended, and when he went into the foyer discovered the building had been locked down, the Echo reports.
After being kept in the cinema for 45 minutes, police escorted small groups to their cars after getting past a line of armed police, he said.
Forensic officers were seen at the Showcase cinema in Liverpool on Thursday morning
A forensics officer takes photographs outside the cinema on Thursday morning
Armed police rushed to the scene at the Showcase cinema in Liverpool on Wednesday night
A firearm was discharged around 20 minutes before the cinema incident at Sangha’s Newsagents on nearby Lower House Lane, police said (CCTV believed to be of the incident at the newsagent)
Showcase Cinema in Liverpool has been placed under lockdown after reports of a gunman on the loose
A cordon has also been place around Sangha’s newsagents (general view) on nearby Lower House Lane
Parents were seen hurrying children into cars before leaving the estate near Croxteth after they were given the all-clear to leave the building from police.
Footage showed dozens of armed police cars circling the building on East Lancashire Road and a police helicopter was filmed flying overhead.
Assistant Chief Constable Jenn Wilson, said: ‘I can report that a 49-year-old man has been arrested following three firearms discharges in the Croxteth and Norris Green areas last night.
‘Thankfully incidents like this, involving a single offender in three separate shootings in close proximity and quick succession, are extremely rare and this is the first time we have had to deal with an incident of this nature on the streets of Merseyside.
‘The shocking and distressing impact these incidents will have had on the shop assistant, the staff at the Showcase Cinema and those filmgoers who found themselves in a lockdown situation in the complex after shots were fired outside the cinema and the residents of Malpas Road cannot be underestimated.
‘Officers were on the ground immediately following the first incident and were able to respond swiftly to the subsequent discharges, and a male was identified, located and arrested on suspicion of all three discharges within 13 hours.’
She added that high visibility patrols will remain in the area throughout the day, continuing: ‘Firearms have no place on our streets and we are committed to arresting those involved in gun crime and taking firearms off our streets.
‘I would appeal to anyone who has information about those involved in gun crime, or who knows were weapons are being stored to contact Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111 so we can further reduce the harm caused by these weapons in our communities.’
Police at the Showcase Cinema on East Lancashire Lane in Liverpool on Thursday
Footage showed dozens of armed police cars circling the cinema on East Lancashire Road and a police helicopter was filmed flying overhead
Police are asking any witnesses to the incident, and anyone with footage to get in touch ‘as a matter of urgency’.
Stonedale retail park and all shops within the area will remain closed while officers continue investigations.
A spokesperson for Showcase Cinemas said: ‘We are aware of an incident at our cinema and surrounding area in Liverpool.
‘The safety and welfare of our staff and customers is always our number one priority and we can confirm no one was injured.
‘We would like to thank our team members and the local police for their swift responses to this active investigation.’
Anyone with footage or information is asked to DM @MerPol or contact Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111 quoting log 928 of Wednesday 3 January.
Merseyside PoliceBreaking News[3][4]
References
- ^ Elizabeth Haigh (www.dailymail.co.uk)
- ^ Merseyside Police (www.dailymail.co.uk)
- ^ Merseyside Police (www.dailymail.co.uk)
- ^ Breaking News (www.dailymail.co.uk)