Gangland warfare erupts with fourth shooting in a week

Tyrone Gilbert was shot in the latest round of a gangland war that has dramatically intensified in the past few days.

The 23-year-old had been paying his respects to Ucal Chin who was murdered in a similar drive-by attack last month.

It was the fourth shooting in the same area of Manchester in a week and the violence has revived memories of a run of killings in the 1990s which saw the city nicknamed "Gunchester".

Gilbert was jailed two years ago with fellow members of a gang called the Longsight Crew.

They had been involved in an armed battle in a hospital where victims of yet another drive-by shooting were being treated. Gilbert was also a witness to the death of a man killed by a gun disguised as a key fob.

Police are trying to establish whether Gilbert's murder is linked to the shooting of a 14-year-old boy at around the same time a mile away.

Armed officers have been patrolling the modern estate in Chorlton-on-Medlock where Friday night's shooting took place.

The incident followed the funeral of Mr Chin, 23, who was driving through Manchester when he was shot by men in another car.

The ceremony attracted an estimated 300 mourners and a strong police presence.

Gilbert was shot dead around midnight while with other mourners in the street outside Mr Chin's home near the city centre.

Witnesses said he and another victim, a 33-year- old man who was wounded in the leg, were taken to hospital by friends.

The manager of a nearby pub said Gilbert had been a friend of Mr Chin.

She said the gunmen opened fire without warning. "It is incredible when you think it was mainly women there,' she added.

"The killers heard about the funeral and took a chance. It looks as if they took a pop at anyone there."

Police issued a tribute to Gilbert from his pregnant girlfriend, referred to only as Lisa.

She said: "Everyone is devastated because of what has happened. His kids loved every bone in his body.

"We were just looking forward to our first baby daughter being born. I just hope the person who has done this realises just what they have done. They have destroyed so many lives."

It is not known how many children Gilbert had.

He was jailed for 20 months for affray for his part in the shoot-out at Manchester Royal Infirmary in 2005.

The clash involved armed members of the Longsight Crew and the rival Gooch Close Gang.

Last Thursday, a 16-year-old boy was hit in the leg during a driveby shooting in Moss Side, while on Tuesday a 36-year-old man was shot in the hip in Longsight.

Both areas are close to Chorltonon-Medlock, to the south of the city centre. In April, a 12-year-old girl, Kamilah Peniston, died after being shot in the head at her home in Gorton, which is also in the area.

Last September, 15-year-old Jessie James was killed as he cycled through a park in Moss Side late at night.

Manchester police deny that gun crime is out of control in the area but admit they are facing "a difficult time".

Chief Superintendent David Keller said: "I would reassure the community that while these incidents do attract a lot of attention, they are very, very rare and the chances of you being a victim are very small."

The difficulties of bringing to court those suspected of gangrelated murders is illustrated by the extraordinary steps being taken at next week's inquest into Jessie James's unsolved killing.

Teenage witnesses are being offered anonymity and the opportunity to give evidence by video.

Voice-distortion technology will also be used in an attempt to break down the "wall of silence" which has frustrated detectives investigating the murder.