Manchester shooting: Tributes paid to lockdown party victims a year on

The families of two men shot at a lockdown party have released heartfelt letters a year on from their deaths.

Abayomi "Junior" Ajose, 36, and 21-year-old Cheriff Tall were shot in Moss Side, Manchester early on 21 June 2020.

Police have appealed for help to catch their killer, who remains at large.

A letter from Mr Ajose's three-year-old daughter Sedona said: "I miss my daddy every day, he was my hero." Mr Tall's sister Khadija also wrote about the "emptiness" in her family.

The men, who did not know each other, were both shot in the head at the party which was attended by up to 400 people.

Abayomi Ajose and Cheriff Tall

Letters written by relatives of the victims have been released by Greater Manchester Police (GMP) a year on from the killings as officers called for the community to find the "courage" to come forward.

Dad-of-three Mr Ajose, a social care worker known as Junior, was remembered by his nine-year-old son Seyon who wrote: "If he was here now he would be very happy and proud of me."

Mr Tall's sister Khadija wrote: "There's an emptiness that our family and some of your friends feel that means nothing will ever be the same again."

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Supt Mark Dexter said officers had knocked on hundreds of doors, spoken to more than 400 witnesses and viewed hundreds of hours of CCTV footage, but needed help to find the "missing piece of the jigsaw".

Det Ch Insp Stuart Wilkinson added: "These families have been through so much and deserve to see this criminal pay the price for the destruction and distress he has caused to their lives."