BLOODBATH ON OUR STREETS
3 dead in gun and knife chaos Boy, 13 injured in shooting
A WEEKEND of violence on the streets of Britain left three dead and two boys – one aged just 13 – with bullet wounds.
In a horrifying string of violent incidents, police confirmed a teenage boy was shot dead in London, a man was stabbed to death in Liverpool and three people were badly injured in an acid attack.
Officers also revealed that another man, known gangland fixer John Kinsella, was shot dead near St Helens, Merseyside, by a gunman on a bicycle.
In another incident, Scotland Yard said two boys, aged 13 and 15, were shot near Harrow, in northwest London.
Officers were called to the scene on the High Street in Wealdstone yesterday afternoon where the boys were found suffering from gunshot wounds.
They were taken to hospital and police said last night they were waiting for
details about their condition. No arrests have been made and no firearms were recovered, police added.
The 13-year-old was shot in the head but his wound is not life threatening, police said.
The latest spike in violence has alarmed communities, but police called for calm as they appealed for witnesses to come forward.
The attacks over the weekend included 17-year-old boy Rhyhiem Ainsworth Barton, who was shot dead in London on Saturday.
Eyewitnesses reported panic on the streets at about 7pm as a gunman in a BMW car sprayed bullets into people’s gardens during a chase allegedly involving the boy. One of the bullets narrowly missed a woman and went through a window.
Armed officers found Rhyhiem lying in a pool of blood on Warham Street in Southwark, south London.
Last night, the teenager’s heartbroken mother Pretana Morgan said her son had been a “good boy”.
“I couldn’t have asked for a better son,” she said. “My son was a very handsome boy. He’d got so much potential.”
Ms Morgan, who is originally from Jamaica, said Rhyhiem wanted to be an architect and was “trying to make a difference” by working with children. He was previously stabbed by a local gang who had also threatkiller ened to kill him last year. His mother was so worried she sent him to live with relatives in Jamaica for his own safety. He only returned to London in February.
She claimed he was targeted by thugs from the gang who she said were terrorising the Brandon Estate in a BMW with a shotgun on Friday and Saturday night. Rhyhiem’s death takes the number of people killed in London this year to more than 60. Police were also investigating yesterday a separate incident, which left three victims in hospital after a suspected acid attack.
Officers said a 17-year-old boy, and two men, aged 22 and 27, were sprayed with a “noxious substance” in Dalston, east London, in the early hours of yesterday morning.
Officers were called at 5.20am to reports of a disturbance in Kingsland High Street.
A Scotland Yard spokeswoman said: “The victims were taken by paramedics to an east London hospital. We await an update on their condition. There have been no arrests and inquiries continue.”
There were violent attacks in other parts of the country. Last night detectives were hunting the of 53-year-old John Kinsella, an influential figure in Liverpool’s underworld.
A martial arts expert who hailed from the streets of Everton, Kinsella was once famously revealed in a court case to have stopped a thug nicknamed the Psycho from threatening to “maim” the former Liverpool footballer Steven Gerrard.
Police said the known hardman was shot dead at St Helens Linkway, Rainhill Stoops, in Merseyside, by a gunman on a mountain bike on Saturday at around 7am.
Officers appealed for information as they released a description of the suspected gunman. Detective Superintendent Lee Turner said: “The offender is reported to have been around 6ft, slim and wearing dark clothing and a hi-vis jacket.
“He is also believed to have been riding a mountain bike.”
Meanwhile, in Liverpool, the same force was investigating the death of a 20-year-old man who was found stabbed to death in the city centre yesterday morning.
Officers and paramedics were called to Hanover Street at about 4am after receiving reports of an injured man with stab wounds.
The as yet unnamed victim was taken to hospital, but later died from his injuries.
A Merseyside Police spokesman warned yesterday: “Knife crime will not be tolerated in Merseyside and those caught carrying a weapon will be brought to justice.
“These weapons can have severe consequences and we will not stand for this criminal behaviour.”
The Hanover Street area of Liverpool remained closed yesterday while police investigated.
Merseyside Police have urged witnesses to the incident or anyone with information to contact them.