Licensed gun owners have been urged to hand in their weapons over fears burglaries could see them fall into criminal hands.
Senior Merseyside Police officers told the ECHO some households in the region have as many as "40 weapons in their home". Temporary Assistant Chief Constable Mark Kameen said: "We have work ongoing to remove and reduce the amount of lawfully-owned firearms across Merseyside so they don't fall into the wrong hands.
"We have people in this area that have 30 or 40 weapons in their home. If that house gets burgled the risk to our communities is elevated. We have gone on the front foot and are speaking to people to encourage them to bring the weapons back to Merseyside Police."
READ MORE: Olivia Pratt-Korbel's infectious laugh heard in newly released videos
The owners have also been urged to improve how guns are secured and stored, as it is feared burglaries are one way firearms are getting into the hands of organised crime groups (OCG). In a review of licensed gun holders across the north-west carried out by the force, it was found 200 guns had been stolen in the past three years.
The ECHO can reveal the new information regarding the firearms following the culmination of Thomas Cashman's trial. Cashman, 34, formerly of Grenadier Drive, West Derby, was found guilty of killing nine-year-old Olivia Pratt-Korbel. Cowardly drug dealer Cashman was chasing convicted criminal Joseph Nee when a shot from his Glock self-loading pistol went through the front door of Olivia's home on Kingsheath Avenue, Dovecot and hit the schoolgirl. Cashman was jailed for 42 years.
Olivia's death was in the same seven day period as Sam Rimmer, who was gunned down on Lavrock Bank, Dingle, and council worker Ashley Dale, who was killed in the back garden of her Old Swan home just days later. Nan Jackie Rutter was shot in October in her Moreton home, while Elle Edwards was shot dead outside the Lighthouse in Wallasey while celebrating Christmas Eve with her friends.
The ECHO has revealed Mr Rimmer, Ms Dale and Ms Edwards were all shot by criminals using Skorpion machine pistols. The gun, described as "battlefield weaponry", is capable of discharging 850 rounds in a minute.
Machine pistols including Skorpions and the Glock handgun used in the murder of Olivia are section 5 firearms and cannot be legally owned. Police though are concerned legal weapons could also fall in to the wrong hands.
ACC Kameen told the ECHO: "When a gun is discharged there's no concern for people's lives or the rules and laws. It's just 'I have a mission and a gun and I'm going to shoot it'. That's a really challenging environment for us to be operating in but we do and we operate well.
"We're relentless and we hunt down and target those people in serious and organised crime. But the force is prevention driven so we are looking at removing that threat before it emanates."
ACC Kameen and Deputy Chief Constable Chris Green told the ECHO before August the region hadn't seen a firearms discharge-related homicide for 13 months. The senior officers also said last year there were 49 discharges in Merseyside - nearly a 50% decrease since the previous years.
But ACC Kameen said: "The numbers tell one story, however, we’re not here about the numbers, 49 is too many. It might be the lowest in 22 years, but if you live on the streets where this is happening, what would you be saying?
"Would you be saying ‘Merseyside Police, it’s really good what you’re doing’? No, you’d be saying ‘a person has been killed in my street’. We need to work an awful amount harder. We’re proud of our figures, but acutely aware there is an awful lot more to do."
READ NEXT:
Criminals serving city's longest sentences as Thomas Cashman jailed for 42 years
Thomas Cashman jailed for life with minimum term of 42 years for Olivia's murder
Passenger dies on Jet2 flight after going to the toilet 'in distress'
Thomas Cashman's expensive lifestyle funded by the pain and misery he caused
