Liverpool shooting: Arrest after shots fired at Showcase cinema and shop

A man has been arrested after shots were fired at a cinema, a newsagent and a house in Liverpool.

The Showcase Cinema in Croxteth was put into lockdown on Wednesday night when a man threatened staff in the foyer before shooting outside, police said.

One witness said he was "terrified" to see armed officers and was kept inside for over 45 minutes. No-one was hurt.

A 49-year-old man was arrested at about 04:46 GMT in Fazakerley after a Taser was used.

He was detained on suspicion of possession of a Section 1 firearm with intent to endanger life and robbery.

He was taken to a police station on Merseyside where he remains in custody.

People watching films inside were only aware of the incident as they left the cinema on Stonedale Retail Park.

Police locked down the Showcase Cinema in Croxteth

Craig Moorhead from Walton, who had taken his 14-year-old daughter and her friend to watch Wonka, said he was "shocked" and "terrified" when he realised armed police were running into the cinema.

"As we came out we heard all these sirens and the armed response units said we all had to go back inside," he said.

Mr Moorhead told BBC Radio Merseyside he was nervous as they were kept inside for about 45 minutes to an hour.

After an agonising wait, he said when they were allowed to leave they were escorted by police back to their cars.

"I was terrified for the kids - the young girl on the desk was in shock as she saw the guy firing the gun outside and he had come inside and put a gun to her face," he said.

Craig Moorhead said he was "terrified" after seeing armed officers running into the cinema

Merseyside Police declared a major incident and armed officers were scrambled to the cinema at about 20:50, when it was reported that a gunman had entered the venue.

He was reported to have threatened two members of staff in the foyer and fired shots into the air outside before escaping in a car.

About 50 minutes earlier, a gun was fired at the News and Booze store, approximately a mile away, on Lower House Lane in Norris Green.

It was reported a man had entered the shop, which is known locally as Sangha's newsagents, threatened a shop assistant and demanded cash before firing a gun and leaving empty-handed.

The worker was not injured but was left extremely distressed, police said.

At about 22:20, there were further reports that gunshots were heard at a property on Malpas Road.

The newsagents remains cordoned off

Assistant Chief Constable Jenn Wilson said: "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."

She said three separate shootings in close proximity and quick succession were "extremely rare".

Police guard the scene of a house where shots were fired on Malpas Road in Liverpool

A large police presence remains at Stonedale Retail Park with the car park sealed off and all shops within the area closed while officers continue investigations.

Ms Wilson said: "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.

"Firearms have no place on our streets and we are committed to arresting those involved in gun crime and taking firearms off our streets."

Merseyside police and crime commissioner Emily Spurrell praised the response from the emergency services and said she wanted to reassure people there would be an ongoing police presence.

"Last night was clearly a very distressing incident and I'm thinking of all those individuals who were caught up in it at the cinema and at the shop and in the surrounding area," she said.

"Thankfully these incidents are very rare."

She said she understood the impact on the local community and a support service was available.

She added: "We take gun crime incredibly seriously. We know just how dangerous one firearms discharge can be."

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