Gangs from across the UK are said to be reluctant to come to Liverpool.
Sicarius McGrath groomed children into organised crime groups across the North West and "flooded the streets with guns" as he was once described as a "monumental risk to the public". But in 2017, his criminal lifestyle hit home after watching a programme in his cell on the murder of 11-year-old Rhys Jones.
He has now claimed organised crime groups (OCGs) are reluctant to come to Liverpool from across the country. Speaking to Good Morning Britain on Tuesday, April 4, the former gangster and pimp said: "I think Merseyside Police are doing a great job as they are. I think if I commit a crime, serious organised crime, across the country, and Merseyside is one of the very few cities where people, other gangs from other cities, are reluctant to come with weapons because they know the reputation of Merseyside Police.
READ MORE: Criminals serving city's longest sentences as Thomas Cashman jailed for 42 years
"They know the reputation of the Matrix unit and they was all very reluctant to visit this city with weapons. I think Liverpool, or should I say Merseyside Police, are doing a great job and they're probably one of the best police forces in the country at disrupting gangs and dismantling gangs and disrupting organised crime."
The interview with the ITV programme came after Thomas Cashman was sentenced to life with a minimum prison term of 42 years yesterday for the murder of Olivia Pratt-Korbel. The sentencing came following a three-and-a-half-week trial where a jury found him unanimously guilty of the murder.
Cashman, 34, formerly of Grenadier Drive, West Derby, fatally shot Olivia and injured her mum Cheryl Korbel as he chased convicted criminal Joseph Nee into Olivia's family home on Kingsheath Avenue, Dovecot. The cowardly child killer refused to return to the dock to learn his fate. Justice Amanda Yip described his actions as "disrespectful to the family of the deceased".
Sentencing Cashman, Justice Amanda Yip said: "The killing of Olivia Pratt-Korbel is an offence that shocked not only the city of Liverpool, but the nation. Olivia’s name is likely to be remembered for many years. She should not be remembered only for her dreadful last moments. Her family have spoken today of Olivia in life and of the hopes and dreams for her future, which were so cruelly snatched away.
"It is plain that Olivia was a lovely little girl, who cared for others and brightened the lives of her family and friends. They have suffered an unimaginable loss which they must carry for the rest of their lives."
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