A woman killed in a Christmas Eve pub shooting was shot in the head in what police believe was not a targeted attack.
The 26-year-old was with her sister and friends at the Lighthouse in Wallasey Village on Merseyside when she was shot.
Police were called to the scene shortly before midnight, with one neighbour saying they had assumed the gunshots were celebratory fireworks for the festive season.
Four men were hurt in the incident, with one in a critical condition and the other three not believed to have life-threatening injuries.
Police said they believe the gunman fired shots towards the front entrance of the pub and that minutes later a dark-coloured vehicle “possibly an A class Mercedes” was seen leaving the car park.
Detective Superintendent Sue Coombs told a press conference on Christmas Day: “Tragically the victim, a 26-year-old woman, had suffered a serious gunshot injury to her head.
“She was taken to Arrowe Park Hospital but sadly passed away shortly afterwards.
“Her family have been informed and on today, which should be a day with friends celebrating, they are coming to terms with this tragic loss.
“It’s very early stages of the investigation but we do not believe that the victim in this case has been targeted.
“She was out enjoying Christmas with her sister and friends at what should have been a peaceful time.
“What her family are now going through is incomprehensible.”
Police said a 28-year-old man from Beechwood in the Wirral is in a critical condition.
The other three injured include a 22-year-old man, also from Beechwood, who has leg injuries, a 24-year-old man from Wallasey with a hand injury and a 33-year-old man who suffered an injury to his wrist.
Ms Coombs said they were still trying to establish a motive for the “callous shooting” and appealed for anyone with information to come forward.
She said: “We believe that the gunman fired shots towards the front entrance of the pub, we know that minutes later, a dark-coloured vehicle, possibly an A class Mercedes, was seen to leave the pub car park, so we are particularly keen to speak to that male and anybody who knows anything about that vehicle.
“We won’t rest until we find the people responsible for this terrible, terrible crime.”
A spokesman for the Lighthouse pub said the shooting was “a tragedy beyond any words” while Wirral council leader Janette Williamson described it as “nothing less than despicable”.
Wallasey MP Dame Angela Eagle said the incident was “heartbreaking” and appealed for anyone with information to contact police.
Neighbour Jenny Hough, 77, told the PA news agency: “I heard the shots. I thought it was a firework actually, because it was nearly midnight.
“I just thought it was people celebrating midnight on Christmas Day.”
Jeffrey Hughes, minister of the United Reformed Church in Wallasey Village, said news of the shooting will have come as a shock.
He told PA: “Wallasey Village is a fairly lively area, it’s a nice part of Wallasey, its a nice part of the north end of the Wirral.
“We’ve got a lot of young people, families in that area. The Lighthouse is central in that community.
“It’s a shock. When we first heard the news this morning that there’d been a shooting in Wallasey, Wallasey Village is the last place you would think of.”
