Neighbors find themselves at the scene of a murder investigation after a man has been shot

Neighbors woke up to a murder investigation in their street after a man was shot outside a house last night. Merseyside Police have confirmed a murder investigation has been launched after a man was killed on Wednesday.

Officers were called to Quarryside Drive in Kirkby shortly after 6.30pm yesterday evening after a 36-year-old man was said to have been shot. Paramedics attended the scene where they treated the man before taking him to hospital where he died a short time later. Neighbors told the ECHO last night how they heard gunshots in the early evening, with several people explaining how they saw armed police descending the road before an air ambulance landed shortly after.

The man’s next of kin have been informed but Merseyside Police have not yet confirmed the man’s name. As the ECHO arrived at the scene this morning (Thursday July 18), neighbors woke up to find a cordon still in place and work is ongoing to locate the killer as no arrests have yet been made by the officers.

When the ECHO arrived at the scene on Wednesday night, a cordon was in place halfway down the street, with a smaller cordon covering a row of terraced houses opposite Cygnet Court, where there is believed to be an assisted living facility for the elderly . At around 9.30pm, a police forensics team arrived and began investigating outside the home where the man was fatally shot.

A cordon was also erected in nearby Langton Road, where there was a heavy police presence. Merseyside Police have not confirmed whether the two scenes are connected, but neighbors have suggested a man was seen being led away from Langton Road by police. Concerned neighbors came out in large numbers in both areas. On Quarryside Drive, a woman, a mother of two young children, told the ECHO she lived next door to the victim and was at home when the attack happened. She seemed extremely disturbed by what she had heard and witnessed.

She said: “I was doing chores in the garden. Then I went back into the house and the next minute I heard a lot of loud bangs. I knew what it was. So I told my kids to get on the floor. I just wanted to make sure I was okay, then I grabbed my daughter and left the house.

Other people in the area were dismayed because they thought things had improved. They said they did not associate Quarryside Drive, which is directly opposite Liverpool FC’s AXA training ground, with crime and violence. A neighbor said: “He’s upset because there aren’t many problems here, ever. It’s opposite a retirement estate and this road is full of families and children.”

Merseyside Police is continuing its high-visibility patrols in the area to “provide reassurance to the community” and has given assurances that officers will be available for neighbors to speak to. CCTV and house-to-house inquiries continue to take place.

Detective Superintendent Mark Drew of Merseyside Police said: “A homicide investigation is underway this evening following a horrific and tragic incident in which a man has lost his life after being fatally shot. Our thoughts are first and foremost with his family as they try to come to terms with his loss.

“We are still in the early stages of the investigation as we seek to establish why the incident occurred and who was involved.

“We are appealing to anyone who was in the area at around 6.35pm and witnessed the incident to contact Merseyside Police. If you live in the area please check your CCTVs, dashcams or doorbell recordings and if you see anything suspicious please let us know. Any information you provide, no matter how insignificant it may seem, could be vital to our investigation.”