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Man 'murdered by the mob' was blasted with shotgun '100 yards' from home

It has been 37 years since a man linked to a £500,000 bank robbery was shot dead in a "gangster-style execution" as he walked home. Peter James Gibson, 23, was blasted once with a shotgun by an assassin as he walked on Alderville Road, Walton , at around 8pm on November 15, 1988. Harrowing reports in the ECHO at the time described how "stunned" residents found the young man "slumped on the pavement, hands still in his pockets". The residents said Mr Gibson, who had been walking in the direction of his home on nearby Baythorne Road, would have never known what hit him. Investigations to track down the gunman led to nothing. But, the probe took a new twist the following year when a trial at Preston Crown Court heard that Mr Gibson, who was known by his middle name, James, was allegedly involved in a £500,000 raid along with an armed robber and kidnapper . The ECHO reported at the time that a gang of six was pulling the strings behind the bank job. Leonard Newsham, who was jailed for 13 years for his part in the robbery at the National Westminster Bank, refused to name the orchestrators for fear of reprisals. Thirty seven years ago this week Mr Gibson's murder was front page news on The ECHO with the headline 'Murdered by the mob'. Initial reports in the ECHO the day after the murder revealed how horrified residents rushed out of their homes and discovered the 23-year-old in a pool of blood. Stunned families told of how the peace of the quiet, residential street was shattered by the single shotgun blast . One of the first on the scene was Caroline Grace, who told a reporter: "It sounded more like a small explosion - you know, a gas blast or something like that. I ran towards where the sound came from and saw this lad lying in the street." The police were called by neighbour Dot Cunningham, who answered a frantic knocking at her door. Ms Cunningham told an ECHO reporter : "A girl from across the road shouted 'there's a man been shot. Call the police.' I got on the phone to them and then went outside to help. When we got to him it was the worst thing I've seen in my life." Mary Bushell, who was 76 at the time of the incident, added: "I heard the shot but thought it must have been kids with a firework left over from bonfire night." A screech of tyres was heard before and after the shooting by neighbours. Mr Gibson lived with his dad just 100 yards away from where he was shot. They had lived together for 12 years at the time of his death after his mum died. His next door neighbour, Chris Tant, told the ECHO : "It is a terrible tragedy. Especially when you consider his father is so ill. James was a quietish [sic] fellow, always well mannered. He was neat, clean in appearance. He and my son were around the same age as each other and while you couldn't call them close friends they had grown up together." Interviews initially given by Detective Superintendent Tony Bailey said a drug-dealing theory was being considered. However, in the following months the police investigation hit a wall and it was not until a sensational twist at Preston Crown Court that the police finally had a break. The court heard how Mr Gibson had reportedly been with Newsham during the robbery which was "planned with military precision and ruthlessly executed". Sixty-two members of the bank in the town centre were herded at gunpoint into a vault. A court heard how Mr Gibson and Newsham were the "minnows," in the operation. Mr Gibson was shot two months after the robbery and Newsham was caught soon after when he was seen digging up £11,900 buried in the grounds of what was then Fazakerley Hospital. Merseyside Police is continuing to investigate the murder of Mr Gibson. Howard Rubbery, Head of Merseyside Police Serious Case Review Unit, said: “Mr Gibson was murdered 37 years ago and, like all unsolved murder cases, we will continue to review the investigation on a regular basis. “There is no time limit on providing information, and Mr Gibson’s loved ones are yet to have the answers they deserve. We know that the location, personal circumstances and loyalties of people change over time. If you hold anything, come forward directly or anonymously and you will be supported with sensitivity and compassion.” Anyone with information should contact Merseyside Police social media desk via X or Facebook @MerPolCC. You can also report information via the police website: https://www.merseyside.police.uk/ro/report/ocr/af/how-to-report-a-crime/ or call 101 Alternatively, contact the independent charity Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111, or via their website here: https://crimestoppers-uk.org/give-information/forms/give-information-anonymously .

Megan Banner •
Man 'murdered by the mob' was blasted with shotgun '100 yards' from home

It has been 37 years since a man linked to a £500,000 bank robbery was shot dead in a "gangster-style execution" as he walked home. Peter James Gibson, 23, was blasted once with a shotgun by an assassin as he walked on Alderville Road, Walton , at around 8pm on November 15, 1988. Harrowing reports in the ECHO at the time described how "stunned" residents found the young man "slumped on the pavement, hands still in his pockets". The residents said Mr Gibson, who had been walking in the direction of his home on nearby Baythorne Road, would have never known what hit him. Investigations to track down the gunman led to nothing. But, the probe took a new twist the following year when a trial at Preston Crown Court heard that Mr Gibson, who was known by his middle name, James, was allegedly involved in a £500,000 raid along with an armed robber and kidnapper . The ECHO reported at the time that a gang of six was pulling the strings behind the bank job. Leonard Newsham, who was jailed for 13 years for his part in the robbery at the National Westminster Bank, refused to name the orchestrators for fear of reprisals. Thirty seven years ago this week Mr Gibson's murder was front page news on The ECHO with the headline 'Murdered by the mob'. Initial reports in the ECHO the day after the murder revealed how horrified residents rushed out of their homes and discovered the 23-year-old in a pool of blood. Stunned families told of how the peace of the quiet, residential street was shattered by the single shotgun blast . One of the first on the scene was Caroline Grace, who told a reporter: "It sounded more like a small explosion - you know, a gas blast or something like that. I ran towards where the sound came from and saw this lad lying in the street." The police were called by neighbour Dot Cunningham, who answered a frantic knocking at her door. Ms Cunningham told an ECHO reporter : "A girl from across the road shouted 'there's a man been shot. Call the police.' I got on the phone to them and then went outside to help. When we got to him it was the worst thing I've seen in my life." Mary Bushell, who was 76 at the time of the incident, added: "I heard the shot but thought it must have been kids with a firework left over from bonfire night." A screech of tyres was heard before and after the shooting by neighbours. Mr Gibson lived with his dad just 100 yards away from where he was shot. They had lived together for 12 years at the time of his death after his mum died. His next door neighbour, Chris Tant, told the ECHO : "It is a terrible tragedy. Especially when you consider his father is so ill. James was a quietish [sic] fellow, always well mannered. He was neat, clean in appearance. He and my son were around the same age as each other and while you couldn't call them close friends they had grown up together." Interviews initially given by Detective Superintendent Tony Bailey said a drug-dealing theory was being considered. However, in the following months the police investigation hit a wall and it was not until a sensational twist at Preston Crown Court that the police finally had a break. The court heard how Mr Gibson had reportedly been with Newsham during the robbery which was "planned with military precision and ruthlessly executed". Sixty-two members of the bank in the town centre were herded at gunpoint into a vault. A court heard how Mr Gibson and Newsham were the "minnows," in the operation. Mr Gibson was shot two months after the robbery and Newsham was caught soon after when he was seen digging up £11,900 buried in the grounds of what was then Fazakerley Hospital. Merseyside Police is continuing to investigate the murder of Mr Gibson. Howard Rubbery, Head of Merseyside Police Serious Case Review Unit, said: “Mr Gibson was murdered 37 years ago and, like all unsolved murder cases, we will continue to review the investigation on a regular basis. “There is no time limit on providing information, and Mr Gibson’s loved ones are yet to have the answers they deserve. We know that the location, personal circumstances and loyalties of people change over time. If you hold anything, come forward directly or anonymously and you will be supported with sensitivity and compassion.” Anyone with information should contact Merseyside Police social media desk via X or Facebook @MerPolCC. You can also report information via the police website: https://www.merseyside.police.uk/ro/report/ocr/af/how-to-report-a-crime/ or call 101 Alternatively, contact the independent charity Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111, or via their website here: https://crimestoppers-uk.org/give-information/forms/give-information-anonymously .

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