A man and woman arrested following the fatal shooting of graduate Ashley Dale in her Liverpool home have been released on bail, police have said.
The 28-year-old Knowsley Council worker was killed after a gunman forced his way into her home on Leinster Road, Old Swan at around 12.40am on Sunday, August 21.
Miss Dale, described as ‘beautiful’ and a ‘shining light’ by friends and family, was found with gunshot wounds in her back garden and pronounced dead a short time later.
Detective Chief Superintendent Mark Kameen has described the shooter as forcing open the front door and firing ‘multiple-shots indiscriminately’.
She was shot in the back by a gunman in what is believed to have been a case of ‘mistaken identity’.
A man and woman arrested following the fatal shooting of graduate Ashley Dale, 28, (pictured) in her Liverpool home have been released on bail
Police and forensic officers on Leinster Road in Old Swan, Liverpool, on August 21 after Miss Dale was shot dead in her own home
Last Wednesday, a 25-year-old man from Liverpool was arrested on suspicion of her murder and a 21-year-old woman, also from Liverpool, was arrested on suspicion of assisting an offender
Last Wednesday, a 25-year-old man from Liverpool was arrested on suspicion of her murder and a 21-year-old woman, also from Liverpool, was arrested on suspicion of assisting an offender.
On Tuesday, a spokesman for Merseyside Police said both had been conditionally bailed to a later date, pending further inquiries.
Merseyside Police have said detectives do not believe Miss Dale, who worked in the environmental health team at Knowsley Council, was the intended target but believe the killer was targeting the address.
Her death was one of three fatal shootings in Liverpool within a week.
Nine-year-old Olivia Pratt-Korbel was shot dead in her home in Dovecot on Monday, August 22, and Sam Rimmer, 22, was shot in Dingle on Tuesday August 16.
Police are continuing to appeal for information on the three killings.
Detective Chief Inspector Cath Cummings said: ‘We are grateful for all the information given to the investigation team so far and would ask that people continue to come forward.
‘Something you may think is insignificant could prove vital, so let us assess every piece of information and take the appropriate action.’
Police forensic officers at the scene of shooting in Liverpool
Nine-year-old Olivia Pratt-Korbel (pictured) was also shot dead in her home in Dovecot on Monday, August 22, and Sam Rimmer, 22, was shot in Dingle on Tuesday August 16 in a recent spate of shootings in Liverpool
She added: ‘Our thoughts remain with Ashley’s family in this awful time, and I’d ask anyone who knows what happened to do the right thing and support us and Ashley’s family in seeking justice.’
Anybody with information about the killing should contact investigators on Merseyside Police’s online portal, she asked.
Det Ch Insp Cummings said that people can also contact independent charity Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111 or via their online form.
In a statement following the arrests in connection with Miss Dale’s murder last week last week she said: ‘Our thoughts remain with Ashley Dale’s family and friends following this appalling incident which led to her tragic death.
Detective Chief Inspector of Merseyside Police, Cath Cummings, said: ‘Our thoughts remain with Ashley Dale’s family and friends following this appalling incident which led to her tragic death.
‘Our officers have now made two arrests last night. Enquiries continue to establish the motive behind this attack, and identify all those involved.
‘This was a callous attack carried out on a residential street which has brought tragedy to the heart of a community in Merseyside, and we will leave no stone unturned in our efforts to bring those responsible to justice.
‘Although we have made two arrests we still need members of the public to come forward with information too so we can keep our streets safe.’