A man was hurt after being chased into a cafe while allegedly being shot at during an incident on Lodge Lane in Toxteth, Merseyside on June 19 – police are now appealing for witnesses
A man was gunned down inside a café after being chased. Police rushed to Bala Bs Soul Food Kitchen on Lodge Lane in Toxteth at around 5pm on June 19 following reports of gunfire.
Merseyside Police confirmed in a statement that armed units were deployed to the venue after the shooting incident, with Lodge Lane subsequently sealed off between Bentley Road and Seacole Close.
A woman working in the vicinity told the ECHO she heard the three distinct sounds before armed police swarmed the main thoroughfare. She said: “I didn’t see anything, I was upstairs, but we heard three bangs and then all the police arrived.”
The victim, understood to be a man in his 20s, is believed to have been pursued along the street and into the café before being shot. Police discovered multiple bullet casings inside the establishment, reports the Liverpool Echo.
Merseyside Police initially stated no one had been injured in the incident before later confirming a man had sustained non-life threatening wounds.
The shooting marks the second such incident in the locality this month.
One man said: “It is ridiculous what is happening now. There is going to be retaliation for this, it’s not safe.
“I’ve been here for 10 years and it’s just getting worse.”
When the ECHO visited the scene on Saturday morning, two Matrix vans, a patrol car and an unmarked police vehicle were stationed outside the cordoned-off café. Officers could be seen operating within the premises while detectives conducted house-to-house inquiries.
A section 60 order is now in place in the area following the shooting along with an increased police presence.
This gives officers extra stop and search powers in the area which includes Upper Parliament Street, Smithdown Road, Greenbank Road, North Mossley Hill Road, Queens Drive, Aigburth Vale, Carnatic Road, Victoria Road, Ashfield Road, Aigburth Road, Park Road, Park Place and St James Place.
Friday’s shooting comes after a previous incident on Wednesday June 3, when a man was shot in the arm outside the Merseyside Caribbean Council Community Centre on Amberley Street.
The ECHO recently reported how the victim is not cooperating with police and detectives believe the gunman in that incident was on an electric bike and dressed in black.
Speaking after the shooting on Lodge Lane, Detective Chief Inspector Alan Nuttall said: “Firing a gun inside a café was a dangerous and reckless act of violence where many more people could have been hurt and led to more tragic circumstances.
“The investigation is in the very early stages as we continue to establish what has taken place. The shooting took place at a busy time of day with lots of people in the vicinity, so I am appealing to those who we haven’t already spoken to, please get in touch.
“I also urge people in the area to please check your CCTV, dashcam devices or doorbell footage to see if it has captured anything or anyone suspicious which will help with our enquiries. Any information you provide, however, insignificant it may seem, could be vital to our investigation.
“We know that guns cause misery on our streets and we would ask for the public’s help in coming forward with any information they have so we can find the person or people responsible.
“Merseyside Police is committed to removing firearms from our streets and bringing those who carry or use them to justice and we would ask our communities to help us by coming forward and telling us what they know.”
A force spokesperson stated: “Anyone who has information which can assist officers in finding anyone responsible can contact Merseyside Police’s social media desk via X or Facebook @MerPolCC quoting incident number 809 of Friday, June 19.
“You can also report information via the website.”