Police cracking down on criminal gangs where Olivia Pratt-Korbel was murdered seize guns and drugs

Police cracking down on criminal gangs in the area where Olivia Pratt-Korbel was killed have seized thousands of pounds worth of drugs, two guns and cash.

Merseyside Police said its 'Evolve Project' which has taken place over the past month, has allowed them to arrest 15 people in total in Dovecot, Longview, Yew Tree and Huyton in March alone.

Chief Inspector Tony Fairhurst said that officers have “worked tirelessly to help break the cycle of gang culture on the streets” where nine-year-old Olivia was shot by gunman Thomas Cashman.

Olivia's mum, Cheryl Korbel, 46, was also injured during the 34-year-old's pursuit of his intended target Joseph Nee 22 August 2022.

Cashman told the jury at Manchester Crown Court he was a “high-level” cannabis dealer in the area and made between £3,000 and £5,000 a week.

A Merseyside Police spokesman said during March, officers seized more than £8,000 in cash, three high-powered performance vehicle cars, a luxury watch, 1kg of crack cocaine, 1.5kg of suspected ecstasy, 1,000 tablets of suspected Class A drugs, 271 cannabis plants from two cannabis farms and 6.5kg of cannabis.

Police also carried out 10 searches where they found a quad bike, scrambler bike, mountain bike, two e-bikes and a knuckle duster were also seized by police.

Chief Inspector Tony Fairhurst said: “Our officers working in Evolve neighbourhoods, which are those that have been identified as suffering most from organised crime groups, are committed to eradicating the pain and misery those criminals’ cause.

“We want to make it clear to those criminals that the life of crime they have chosen is not the profit-making option they thought it was.

“We will be using all the powers available to us to take back their ill-gotten gains. We will be seizing their cars, their watches, their cash, their luxury commodities, their drugs and we will be giving the proceeds back to the communities they have blighted.

“We will be stopping those suspected of being involved in crime, their family members, their friends and their business associates.

"We know who they are and we will be using all the legislation we can to determine if they are staying on the right side of the law and those found on the wrong side could be facing lengthy prison sentences.”

Cashman will be sentenced on Monday 3 April.