Elle Edwards worked at a beauty studio in Wirral, Merseyside
A man and a woman have been arrested in connection with the murder of a 26-year-old who was shot at a Merseyside pub on Christmas Eve.
Beautician Elle Edwards died in hospital after being shot in the head at the Lighthouse in Wallasey Village.
Police said on Monday night a man, 30, was arrested in Tranmere on suspicion of murder and attempted murder.
A 19-year-old woman from Rock Ferry was also arrested on suspicion of conspiracy to murder, they added.
Both suspects have been taken into custody and will be questioned by detectives.
Four other people who were at the pub were also injured – one of those, a 28-year-old man from Beechwood in Wirral, is still receiving medical treatment, police said.
‘Sickening and heart-breaking’
Elle’s sister Lucy, who left the pub just before the fatal shooting, visited the scene on Tuesday to lay flowers.
Her card read: “To my Elle May, I love you forever, you will always be by my side. Love Lucy Lou. x”
Other flowers and tributes have also been left at the scene, including a note signed “mum and dad” which read: “To my beautiful Elle, you are the light of my life, you will never be gone.”
A heart-shaped plaque bearing a pink and green floral design read: “Special Daughter, the happiness you brought in your own special way, will be remembered with love each and every day.”
Merseyside Police believe Ms Edwards, who was also known as Ellie, was not the target of the attack.
Chief Constable Serena Kennedy vowed her officers would be “relentless” in hunting down those responsible for her death.
She described her killing as “sickening and heart-breaking” which has “ruined so many lives and culminated in the loss of a beautiful young woman”.
Elle Edwards and four men were shot outside the Lighthouse on Christmas Eve
Earlier, Ms Edwards’ colleagues at Nova Hair and Beauty Studio in Moreton, Wirral, said they were “absolutely lost for words”.
“Heaven gained the most beautiful angel, we are all heartbroken, thinking of your family right now Elle,” they wrote on Instagram.
Several shots were fired at the entrance to the Lighthouse at about 23:50 GMT on Christmas Eve. The pub was packed with mainly young people.
Ms Edwards was rushed to Arrowe Park Hospital where she was pronounced dead.
One of Ms Edwards’ friends, called Jess, said people initially thought they had heard fireworks when the shooting started.
“But automatically everything just stopped and we had a feeling that something wasn’t right,” she told Sky News on Monday.
She said she felt “numb” when she saw her friend on the floor, with people trying to help her.
Police are appealing for more information, especially from those who were in the pub at the time of the shooting.
“We are also appealing to motorists and residents in the area, who may have captured anything on Dashcam or CCTV to contact us and every bit of evidence is crucial to the investigation,” Det Supt Coombs said.
Image source, PA Media
Crime scene tape and evidence markers were seen at the Lighthouse pub
Merseyside Police earlier said it had stepped up its presence in the area after the shooting.
It follows other high-profile shootings on Merseyside in the past year including the deaths of nine-year-old Olivia Pratt-Korbel and Knowsley Council worker Ashley Dale.
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