CCTV shows police arresting Thomas Cashman

Thomas Cashman will be jailed for life at Manchester Crown Court for the murder of nine-year-old Olivia Pratt-Korbel, gunned down in her home last year. The 34-year-old, believed to have had a £250,000 price put on his head by local underworld figures concerned about him turning “grass” in exchange for more lenient treatment, arrived at the court this morning, with armed officers surrounding the building. He refused to enter the dock to hear his sentencing, with his defence saying he believe the case had turned into a “circus” as the killer also complained that members of the Crown Prosecution Service present at court had sung “We are the Champions” by Queen after his guilty verdict.

Last week, Cashman was convicted of the killing and the wounding with intent of her mother Cheryl Korbel, 46, who was pictured arriving at the court early this afternoon.

The tragedy occurred as Cashman chased convicted drug dealer Joseph Nee into the house where Olivia and her mother lived, in the Dovecot area of the city on August 22 last year.

Cheryl Korbel, 46, read a statement to the court, taking a teddy which was made from Olivia’s pyjamas into the witness box with her.

She said the nine-year-old had been due to have her hair cut five days after her death and wanted to donate 12 inches of hair to the Princess Trust “for sick kids to have beautiful wigs”. She described her daughter as a “girly girl” who “had her own style”.

Ms Korbel said as her other two children, Ryan and Chloe, became older, Olivia spent most of her time with her mother. She added: “She was nicknamed my shadow.”

She told the court Olivia was always talking, saying: “One thing I miss the most is hearing her say ‘mum’. I just miss hearing her voice. It’s just so quiet. I would do and give anything in the world to hear her chatting to me.”

Ms Korbel said her grandmother had been admitted to hospital recently and a couple of weeks ago was brought home for end-of-life care. She told the court she “held out long enough to hear that coward had been found guilty” but passed away last night.

She said Olivia would never get to make her Holy Communion, wear a prom dress or have a 16th birthday party. She said: “All that promise for her future so cruelly taken away. Now I have to drive to the cemetery to be close to my baby daughter. I tell her she will live on in my heart, she will always be with us. My little shadow.”

Olivia’s sister Chloe, 18, said: “August 22 2022 was the worst day of my life, the day my Olivia was taken away from us. Not only did I lose my baby sister but I lost my best friend.

“When I was told she passed away I felt as though my heart had stopped beating. A piece of me left with her that night and since then I have felt as though I am in a nightmare I can’t wake up from.”

The jury also found Cashman guilty of the attempted murder of Nee and two counts of possession of a firearm with intent to endanger life.

During the 19-day trial at Manchester Crown Court, the jury heard Cashman admitted operating as a “high-level” cannabis dealer in the area.

The court was told he had been “scoping out” Nee, the intended target, on the day of the shooting and lay in wait for him, armed with two guns, as he watched a football match at a friend’s house.

Footage played to the jury showed the gunman, wearing tracksuit bottoms which matched a pair worn by Cashman, chasing Nee up Kingsheath Avenue and firing three shots.

The jury was told Nee ran towards the open door of Olivia’s family home, after Ms Korbel came out to see what the noise was, and the fatal shot was fired through the front door.

It hit Ms Korbel in the wrist as she tried to shut the door and struck Olivia in the chest.

Cashman, a father-of-two, said around the time of the shooting he had been at a friend’s house where he counted £10,000 in cash and smoked a cannabis cigarette.

During his evidence, he told the court: “I’m not a killer, I’m a dad.”

However, a woman who had a fling with Cashman told the jury he came to her house after the shooting, where he changed his clothes and she heard him say he had “done Joey”.

Paul Russell, 41, who admitted assisting an offender by driving Cashman away from an address after the shooting and passing his clothes to another person, is expected to be sentenced separately at a later date.

Source: Read Full Article