The mother of a girl who was killed as a result of gang violence in Liverpool has joined the families of other victims of gun crime to speak out against it.
Olivia Pratt-Korbel was nine when she was killed in her home in Dovecoat on 22 August 2022. She was shot by Thomas Cashman, a drug dealer, as he chased a competitor.
Cashman fired several shots, one of which struck Olivia in the chest. She was taken to hospital but was pronounced dead the same day.
Olivia’s death was the third fatal shooting in Merseyside in a week. Ashley Dale, 28, was killed in her home in Old Swan, Liverpool, the day before, and Sam Rimmer, 22, was killed in the Dingle area of the city on 16 August.
Speaking about her daughter and the anguish she had endured from losing her, Olivia’s mother, Cheryl Korbel, said her “little girl was only nine years old when she was shot in her own home. She had her whole life ahead of her and the pain of her loss is indescribable.”
She said: “It has been three years since I last heard her laugh, put her to bed or held her hand, but the pain of her loss still feels like it happened yesterday. I will never see her grow up, get married, have children of her own or fulfil her dreams, and that is devastating.”
In response to the three deaths, Merseyside police launched an operation known locally as Evolve, using Home Office funding, intended to “clear communities of crime and rebuild them”.
Many in the community have praised Evolve’s work in the years since, including Korbel and Tim Edwards, the father of Elle Edwards, 26, who died after being shot outside a pub in Wirral on Christmas Eve 2022.
“Elle should still be here, living her life and making plans for her future,” Edwards said. “We can’t change what happened to her but we can help stop it from happening to someone else.
“If you know something, please come forward. Your courage could save a life and spare another family the pain we live with every day.”
Speaking about the success of Evolve, the chief constable Serena Kennedy said the deaths had “sent shock waves of grief” through those affected but that “hard work, commitment and collaborative spirit are making a real difference – building trust, reducing harm and creating neighbourhoods where everyone can feel safe and supported”.
She said Evolve had “made significant progress in disrupting and dismantling criminal networks, safeguarding vulnerable people, and restoring a sense of pride and security to neighbourhoods”, and she thanked the community “for the achievements we have made together so far”.
As the third anniversary of her daughter’s murder nears, Korbel credited Evolve for its attempts to “help prevent further tragedies and other families from having to endure the pain we feel every single day”.
“While it’s making a difference, we need your help,” she said. “To keep our communities safest, if you know anything about criminality, please speak out.”
