Two arrested in connection with shooting of Elle Edwards released from custody

Two people arrested in connection with the Christmas Eve shooting of Elle Edwards have been released from the custody of detectives investigating her murder, Merseyside Police said.

A 30-year-old man from Tranmere, in the Wirral, who was arrested on suspicion of murder and attempted murder has been recalled to prison on licence.

A 19-year-old woman from Rock Ferry who was arrested on suspicion of conspiracy to murder has been bailed, police said.

A 31-year-old man arrested on Thursday on suspicion of conspiracy to murder remains in custody and inquiries into the fatal shooting are continuing, they added.

Ms Edwards, 26, a beautician, was shot in the head at the Lighthouse pub in Wallasey Village, Wirral, as she celebrated Christmas with friends, dying later in hospital.

Detectives have said Ms Edwards was not believed to have been the intended target of the attack.

Merseyside Police released footage of one of the arrests on Twitter on Thursday.

The black and white recording shows officers entering a property on a residential street before exiting with a suspect and putting them in a police car.

The shooting left one man in a critical condition and saw three others suffer non life-threatening injuries.

On Wednesday, Deputy Chief Constable Ian Critchley, of Merseyside Police, told the media a 28-year-old man from Beechwood in Wirral remains in a critical condition.

He added: “I am still appealing for information in relation to anybody who knows who the person was responsible for pulling that trigger in the most indiscriminate, most appalling way, anybody who knows where the weapon is, anybody who has harboured or has any information at all.”

Asked whether the attack could be linked to an ongoing feud between gangs in Wirral, Mr Critchley said: “We have seen over a number of months some level of escalation here.

“There has been real relentless activity in relation to the arrest of a number of people who are now behind bars or remanded in custody, significant seizures of drugs and weapons.”

He urged families of those involved in organised crime to come forward and said: “You have blood on your hands too if you’re a bystander or if you want to live off the profits being gained.”

Tributes have been paid to Ms Edwards, who was remembered as a “special daughter” and someone who brought “laughs and happiness” into people’s lives.

She is understood to have worked at a local beauty salon – Nova Studio – which, in a tribute posted on Instagram, thanked her for “all of the laughs and happiness you brought into our lives, rest in paradise, angel”.

People have been urged to “do the right thing and speak up” if they have information, with police and local councillors warning that people should not “stay quiet” or “sit in silence” if they have useful knowledge about the murder.