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Liverpool Echo
Liverpool Echo
National
Luke Traynor

Blood-spattered laminate reveals almost deadly hired gun hit at home of innocent man

This was the bloodied scene left behind when a hired hitman knocked on what he thought was a rival's door, clutching pizza boxes, but while secretly armed with a deadly weapon.

New photos show innocent David Barnes' spattered blood found at the entrance to his home after the visit of serving soldier Aaron Bretherton.

The 56-year-old was fired at with three bullets, which sent him desperately flinging his door shut, but not before one hit him in his leg.

Mr Barnes suffered life-changing injuries, undergoing several operations using metal pins and plates which means he will never be able to walk the same again.

Bretherton, from Everton, had travelled from Liverpool to Warrington to carry out the shooting, with fellow recruits Lewis Fitzpatrick - the "arranger" and Anthony Morris - the "wheels" - in a bid to target convicted heroin dealer Liam Byrne Jnr.

But instead of him, they blundered and stumbled across his step-dad, Mr Barnes, at his home on Poplars Avenue, Orford, Warrington.

The bloodied scene where David Barnes was shot in Warrington (cheshire police)
Gun and ammunition found at the home of Aaron Bretherton (cheshire police)

It was one of a series of mistakes made by the gang who thought they were "untouchable," but whose trail of tell-tale errors led to their downfall.

Key images from the police investigation into the gangland hit - ordered by Jamie Rothwell from his Spanish base, prosecutors said - can now be revealed.

Among them was a secret hide in Morris' works white Transit van where a crucial mobile phone had been stashed.

The vehicle was tracked down to Southport when police swarmed around Shaftesbury Avenue, and a home known as a "safe house" to many who lived in the area.

Morris, from Aintree, was detained on nearby Grantham Road and the phone and a later examination of it, led detectives to his accomplices, shooter Bretherton and Fitzpatrick from Norris Green.

Other damning footage were clips that showed Bretherton at Mr Barnes' door, shouting "pizza delivery", waiting until the door was opened, and then letting off bullets before sprinting away.

Driver Anthony Morris on his way to pick up accomplices ahead of the shooting of David Barnes in Orford (cheshire police)
Driver Anthony Morris on his way to pick up accomplices ahead of the shooting of David Barnes in Orford (cheshire police)

But the 24-year-old even stopped in his tracks during the escape, turning once more to fire off a final bullet in a desperate job to get the job done.

Pictures can be shown today of ammunition and a Glock handgun found in the extractor fan of the oven in Bretherton's City View apartment, although that was not the weapon used in the April 24 shooting, when lockdown was at its first peak.

Much of the Liverpool gang's movements before the gangland hit were later discovered and captured on street cameras across Merseyside, Cheshire and north Wales.

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It made their defence in court almost hopeless, yet they still chose to run a trial and test their guilt before a jury.

One clip caught 23-year-old Morris leaving his Connah's Quay work garage in a hurry, dashing to meet Bretherton and 26-year-old Fitzpatrick in Liverpool, his van framed clearly going through a tunnel toll, hours before the attack.

Another video showed Bretherton and Fitzpatrick heading to Warrington, a handful of hours before the shooting, to carry out a reconnaissance mission.

Aaron Bretherton, 24 of Netherfield Road South in Everton was convicted of conspiracy to inflict grievous bodily harm (Cheshire Police)
Lewis Fitzpatrick, of Eldersfield Road, Norris Green, was found guilty of conspiracy to inflict grievous bodily harm (Cheshire Police)
Anthony Morris, of no fixed abode, was found guilty of conspiracy to inflict grievous bodily harm (Cheshire Police)

The blue S-Max car was picked up in the Orford area, clearly scoping out the geography of the area amid a discussion about how best to carry out the hit.

In a second attempted attack on the same day, the gang moved to the nearby Longford district, with intentions to visit a man called Charlie Cullen.

He was name-checked by prosecutors over the last few weeks at Liverpool Crown Court as the dad of Leon Cullen.

Liam Byrne Jnr, the supposed target for the shooting on Poplars Avenue, Warrington (cheshire police)
Driver Anthony Morris on his way to pick up accomplices ahead of the shooting of David Barnes in Orford (cheshire police)

Again, a man with pizza boxes stood at the front door, but the present occupant who answered informed the caller Mr Cullen had moved away and no longer lived at the address.

That explanation appeared to be accepted by the would-be gunman who turned away and left.

The deadly plots were the orders of alleged gangland figure Jamie Rothwell, who was directing operations from abroad, the trial heard.

Aaron Breterton and Lewis Fitzpatrick, on a recce ahead of shooting (cheshire police)

A £10,000 bounty was offered for anyone who would fulfil the command.

On Friday, Bretherton, Fitzpatrick and Morris were found guilty of conspiracy to inflict grievous bodily harm.

The hit was orchestrated using the now notorious and widely known communications platform of Encrochat, busted by cyber experts and law enforcement agencies in the summer of 2020.

An encrypted mobile telephone and £4,000 in cash were seized from Fitzpatrick’s home on Eldersfield Road in Liverpool.

Detective Chief Inspector Mike Evans, from Cheshire Police's Serious and Organised Crime Unit, said: “This was a co-ordinated attack that involved weeks of sophisticated planning and preparation with each individual fulfilling a specific role to ensure the hit was carried out.

“However this didn’t match their actions on the night of the shooting as they were far from sophisticated in the way that they carried out the attack.

Aaron Bretherton at the door of David Barnes in Warrington (cheshire police)
Evidence seized from the home of Aaron Bretherton (cheshire police)

“Bretherton shot an innocent man on his own doorstep causing life changing injuries.

"The victim has undergone several operations using metal pins and plates which means he will never be able to walk the same again.

“The driver Morris used one of his employer’s vehicles and concealed a mobile phone in a hide, which was crucial to the investigation as it enabled us to identify Bretherton and Fitzpatrick and place them at the scene through telecoms analysis.

“They thought they were untouchable but instead they made mistakes which led to detectives unravelling their plot and taking a viable firearm out of circulation.

“While justice has been served, I hope this is a reminder to those who enter into a world of organised crime that it can also lead to a life of fear and violence.”

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