Olivia Pratt-Korbel’s mum begged ‘stay with me baby’ after girl, 9, was shot dead in chest at home
OLIVIA Pratt-Korbel's mum begged her daughter to "stay with me baby" after a gunman shot her inside their home, a court has heard.
The nine-year-old died after a bullet struck her in the chest at her house in Dovecot, Liverpool, just after 10pm on August 22 last year.
Her mum, Cheryl Korbel, 46, was injured in the shooting as the gunman chased Joseph Nee into the property.
Thomas Cashman, 34, denies the murder of Olivia, the attempted murder of Nee and the wounding with intent of Cheryl.
The alleged killer, of West Derby, Liverpool, also denies two counts of possessing a firearm with intent to endanger life.
On Tuesday, Manchester Crown Court heard how Cheryl screamed "stay with me baby" in the moments after her daughter was shot.
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The court heard Olivia "went all floppy" following the shooting, as Cheryl screamed for help and family members called the police.
The prosecution said the mum recalled: "I realised that she must’ve been hit, because I didn’t know until then, and I lifted her top up and the bullet had got her right in the middle of the chest."
It came moments after Cheryl ran outside the family home after hearing gunshots, before retreating back inside.
David McLachlan KC, prosecuting, told the jury how Nee had ran up the Korbels' driveway on Kingsheath Avenue during the pursuit before banging on the door and shouting "help me".
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Cheryl - unable to slam the door because it was on latch as neighbours were visiting - screamed at Nee to "go away".
During the struggle, the court heard Olivia appeared downstairs, telling Cheryl: "Mum, I'm scared."
The gunman caught up with Nee, allegedly firing two shots into the home, one of which struck Cheryl in the wrist before hitting Olivia in the chest.
A neighbour described hearing bangs before "the worst screaming I've ever heard in my life".
The court heard neighbours saw Nee stumble out of the house and collapse in the road, where he made a phone call and a black car with five males in it arrived and took him away.
Olivia was rushed to nearby Alder Hey Children's Hospital by police at around 10.11pm but was pronounced dead just over an hour later.
BLOOD SPLATTERED DOOR
On Tuesday, the jury were shown an image of the front door of the Korbel home where the alleged gangland pursuit ended in Olivia's death.
Blood splatters and bullet holes are visible from the inside of the door in the images.
The court heard how Cashman had been "lying in wait" for his "intended target" on the evening of the shooting.
The prosecution say Cashman had two loaded firearms on him: a self-loading 9mm Glock and a 0.3 calibre revolver.
“His task, the prosecution say, was to kill Joseph Nee", Mr McLachlan added.
He showed the jury a series of CCTV images, moving footage and maps which he said showed Cashman trying to locate Nee in the hours leading up to the shooting.
Mr McLachlan said Nee was watching Liverpool vs Manchester United at the house of another man in Dovecot, Liverpool.
The court heard Cashman travelled past this property - where Nee's van was parked outside - on "six separate occasions", including one journey on foot.
Cashman had monitored the Finch Lane address from around 3pm on August 22, with Nee leaving in his Volkswagen Transport van and spotted at Screwfix at around 4.15pm.
Nee later returned to the Finch Lane address for kick-off at around 8pm.
He left the house at around 10pm and began walking down Kingsheath Avenue with another man who had also been watching the game, the court heard.
The jury was then shown CCTV stills of the person following Nee, who the prosecution say is Cashman.
Mr McLachlan said: "He does not accept that that was him."
A "relentless" pursuit of Nee by the gunman then unfolded where Nee was shot in the midriff by the Glock and fell to the ground.
But “for some reason, possibly that the pistol malfunctioned", it was unable to discharge again, the court heard.
THREE GUNSHOT WOUNDS
Nee is claimed to have got up and kept running down Kingsheath Avenue where the chase ended in the Korbel household.
The shot that killed Olivia came from a revolver, the court heard.
A post-mortem showed she suffered three gunshot wounds caused by a single bullet, which went into her chest, exited the chest and became embedded in her upper arm.
Mr McLachlan said Cashman ran away from the scene by climbing through back gardens.
The court heard he went to the house of a woman, who cannot be named for legal reasons, where he changed clothes.
The woman says she heard him say the name "Joey Nee" and something along the lines of: "I've done Joey".
The court heard the woman "broke down" when hearing of Olivia's murder and "couldn't protect" Cashman, so went to the police.
Cashman is said to have left the address shortly after 10.45pm, with the former being dropped back at his van on Aspes Road.
The jury was told Cashman was later driven back by another man to where he had parked his Citroen Berlingo van earlier in the day.
Two days after the shooting Cashman went to an address in Runcorn, Merseyside, where he was later arrest on September 4.
During his arrest, he told cops: "You stupid c****, youse are stitching me up for whatever it is, what's it for? What have I done, go on?"
After being told the circumstances of his arrest, he said: "That's a load of bull****. Everything that said is a load of sh** and I've done nothing. It's nothing to do with me."
In his interview he gave a prepared statement saying he had no involvement and then answered "no comment", the court heard.
He was re-arrested at an address in Liverpool on September 29, the court heard, and told police: "You've got an innocent man."
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Following her death, Olivia's relatives described her as a "unique, chatty, nosey little girl who broke the mould when she was born".
Cashman's trial is expected to last four weeks.
