Mother is shot dead at home as she tries to shield her children
A MOTHEr was gunned down in front of her daughter on her own doorstep trying to protect her children from ‘gangsters’, it was claimed yesterday.
Lianne Gordon was described as a ‘beautiful soul’ with a ‘heart of gold’ who had devoted her life to teaching young children and caring for her disabled son.
The 42-year-old is said to have been attempting to shield her children when a gunman started spraying bullets on her doorstep, killing her and injuring a 16-year-old boy and a 20-year-old man.
Last night police were hunting the man responsible for the shocking triple shooting, which took place in east London on Tuesday evening.
Neighbours were alerted at around 6.30pm by the sound of gunshots and the cries of the victim’s 16-year- old daughter, who screamed: ‘My mum has been shot in the head.’
Horrified local residents believe Ms Gordon may have run out of her home in a bid to protect her 21-year-old son, who is confined to a wheelchair.
A local garage worker claimed that she had shouted out, ‘No, don’t do it’, shortly before the shots were fired.
Police sealed off the road for forensic examination as officers appealed for CCTV footage from neighbours.
The two other victims are recovering in hospital. Their injuries are not life-threatening.
Scotland Yard detectives said they were considering the possibility that the shooting was gang-related following a similar incident in the area on Saturday when shots were fired at a car.
But friends said mother-of-two Ms Gordon was a ‘completely innocent person’ and not the intended victim of the attack, which happened hours after she returned to her home in a modest cul-de-sac after a holiday.
The victim’s best friend Jackie Finnigan, 52, said Ms Gordon was an ‘ incredible person’ who had never been mixed up with gangs.
The nurse said: ‘She was just there for everyone, anyone who needed or wanted anything – who needed to go somewhere, needed shopping, needed a babysitter, anything. It doesn’t matter what it was, she was there.’
When she received a phone call about the shooting, Ms Finnigan was shocked: ‘It didn’t register because it’s Lianne and Lianne isn’t involved in things like that.
‘I’m a nurse and I normally deal with this on a daily basis but you never think it’s going to happen to your own.
‘We all used to help out with [her son]. My elder son, he used to take summers off and he used to take him to the centre there for disabled people.’
Lucinda Leadette, 68, whose daughter was a friend of the victim, said she was a ‘protective mum’ who would have been thinking of her children inside.
Yesterday flowers were laid at the scene in Hackney by devastated friends and family, with one tribute reading: ‘ To Lianne: Such a beautiful soul. Gone too soon!’
Last night, her family said: ‘Lianne had a heart of gold, we her family are going to miss her immensely.’
Detective Chief Superintendent James Conway said: ‘ We believe all the victims of the shooting were known to each other but they were not related. I want to offer my most sincere condolences to the family and friends of the victims and also to all of those affected in the wider community by this incident.
‘It is important that we keep an open mind regarding motive and we will follow the evidence. It is too early in this investigation to comment further on motive though we are considering the possibility that this was gang linked.’ Mayor of Hackney Caroline Woodley said: ‘I just want to say this is an absolutely heartbreaking incident and my thoughts and everyone’s at the council’s are with the loved ones of Lianne and of the other injured victims.’
POLICE have launched a manhunt after a teenager was stabbed to death near a busy London train station.
The 17- year- old boy was attacked by a knifeman in Sutton High Street at around 7pm on Tuesday and pronounced dead at the scene.
No arrests have been made and police have launched an urgent manhunt for the attacker. Detective Chief Inspector Mike Nolan, of the Met’s Specialist Crime Command, said: ‘A family is reeling from the shock of losing a young family member to violence.
‘Help us identify and remove the dangerous individual responsible from your streets.’
‘She was there for everyone’