Two men are arrested after the teenager was shot in Liverpool while waiting for a bus after school.
Image source, PA Media
A teenage girl has been seriously injured in a shooting as she was waiting at a bus stop after school.
Merseyside Police said shots were fired from a group riding bikes in the Toxteth area of Liverpool at about 17:10 GMT on Tuesday.
The 15-year-old girl suffered “devastating” gunshot wounds to her upper body, with police saying it was a miracle she had survived.
A man, 21, has been arrested on suspicion of attempted murder.
He was also held on suspicion of possession of a firearm with intent to endanger life.
A 60-year-old man, from Liverpool, was later arrested on suspicion of assisting an offender.
The girl was taken to hospital where she remains in a “serious” but stable condition, police said.
Det Ch Supt Mark Kameen described the attack as “callous and cowardly” and said police were looking for several people riding up to four bikes, possibly electric ones.
All the suspects were wearing dark clothing and face masks or balaclavas, he said.
Police believe shots were fired by “one or more” people on the bikes in Upper Warwick Street before they made off in the nearby North Hill Street area.
Image source, PA Media
A short time after the girl was shot a 21-year-old man turned up at hospital with a gunshot injury to his arm, an incident police said could be linked.
Forensic examinations have been carried out at the scene and officers have cordoned off the bus stop, with forensic tape seen around a single bullet hole.
Det Ch Supt Kameen said: “The actions of those people responsible for this attack on a 15-year-old schoolgirl who was waiting in a bus stop to go home from school are utterly appalling and shocking.”
He said it showed a “total disregard and contempt” for honest, law-abiding people.
‘Deeply shocking’
Officers have carried out house-to-house inquiries and CCTV is being checked as investigations continue.
Detectives are appealing for witnesses or anyone with dashcam footage to come forward, adding the attack took place at rush hour in an area with roadworks and stationary traffic.
Police have also stepped up patrols in the area.
Merseyside’s Police and Crime Commissioner Emily Spurrell described the shooting in a tweet as “deeply shocking and upsetting”.
Mayor of Liverpool Joanne Anderson also tweeted that it was “very alarming and upsetting to learn a 15-year-old girl is in hospital after a shooting on the streets of our city”.
“As always in situations like this, please remain calm and provide any assistance to the police if you can,” she added.
