Wallasey pub shooting: Woman fatally shot was not targeted - police

Police officers remained at the scene on Sunday morning

Police hunting a gunman who killed a woman at a pub in Merseyside on Christmas Eve have appealed for help over the "callous shooting".

Four other people were injured but police do not believe the 26-year-old victim, who was celebrating with her sister and friends, was targeted.

Officers said the shooter fired towards the front entrance of The Lighthouse in Wallasey Village, Wirral, at about 23:50 GMT on Saturday.

The woman had been shot in the head.

She died after being taken to Arrowe Park Hospital.

Four men were also injured, one of whom - a 28-year-old from Beechwood - is in a critical condition.

A 22-year-old, also from Beechwood, sustained injuries to his legs, a 24-year-old, from Wallasey, suffered an injury to his hand while a 33-year-old suffered a wrist injury.

The woman was taken to hospital but was later pronounced dead

Officers said the pub was a "busy venue full of young people" and that the gunman's actions "were totally and utterly reckless".

Speaking at a press conference, Merseyside Police Assistant Chief Constable Jenny Sims said: "Our investigation will rely heavily on information we receive from the public, and I urge members of the public and the local community who have any information which could help us, to come forward, so we can bring those responsible for this horrific murder of a young woman at Christmas to justice.

"She should have had the rest of her life to look forward to. Instead, her family can now only think of what might have been.

"These people need to be caught."

Det Supt Sue Coombs added: "Her family have been informed and today, which should be a day with friends celebrating, they are coming to terms with this tragic loss.

"It's very early stages of the investigation but we do not believe that the victim in this case has been targeted.

"She was out enjoying Christmas with her sister and friends at what should have been a peaceful time.

"What her family are now going through is incomprehensible.

"At this stage of the investigation, we are trying to establish the motive and circumstances surrounding this callous shooting.

"We know that minutes later, a dark-coloured vehicle - possibly an A-Class Mercedes - was seen to leave the pub car park, so we are particularly keen to speak to that male and anybody who knows anything about that vehicle."

Evidence markers were found near a pub advertising board at The Lighthouse

In a statement, The Lighthouse pub said staff were "completely shocked", adding that it was a "tragedy beyond any words".

Wirral Council leader Janette Williamson described the shooting as "nothing less than despicable", while Wallasey MP Dame Angela Eagle said it was "heartbreaking" and appealed for anyone with information to contact police.

In a joint statement, Wallasey ward councillors Ian Lewis, Lesley Rennie and Paul Hayes said: "Taking weapons into a crowded, family pub on Christmas Eve shows that the person or people responsible are without conscience."

They joined calls for people with information to contact police, and added: "Do not leave it to others to help take those responsible, and their weapons, off our streets."

After some high-profile gun deaths in Merseyside in the past year, the government allocated £350,000 for the roll-out of a pilot scheme across the region to cut gun and knife crime.

Among those killed was nine-year-old Olivia Pratt-Korbel, who was shot when a gunman chased a man into her home in Liverpool in August.

She died a day after council worker Ashley Dale was fatally shot in her back garden in Liverpool. The 28-year-old was not believed to have been the intended target of the attack.