The star witness in the murder trial of Olivia Pratt-Korbel has been subject to scores of death threats and may face years in a witness protection programme.
Thomas Cashman, 34, is facing a life sentence for shooting nine-year-old Olivia in her home in Dovecot, Liverpool, last August as he hunted down drug dealer Joseph Nee.
Cashman was said to have been hired to kill Nee by a feared international drug trafficking cartel who suspected the latter of a jail plot to steal a consignment of their cocaine.
And the Mirror has spoken to several sources who say Cashman had been named as a suspect in three gangland murders dating back more than a decade.
The prosecution's witness, a woman who once had a fling with Cashman, was defiant in the face of Liverpool's gangs and the feared hitman himself, as she told the juryt there was "no such thing as a grass when it involves a nine-year-old girl".
She gave the jury the killer's whereabouts the night of Olivia's murder, along with details of how he attempted to cover it up, blowing to pieces his thin alibi.
According to a report from the Times, the woman was believed to have had more death threats than any other police witness in Merseyside's history.
She could face years in a witness protection programme, hidden away from friends and family.
Detective Superintendent Mark Baker of Merseyside Police, a veteran of Liverpool’s murky world of organised crime, said he had "never seen such bravery" in his 30 years as a police officer.
Another police source said that for the witness to give evidence against a "drug dealer and violent gangster" meant "everything" both to Olivia's family and to the community of Merseyside and Merseyside Police force as an organisation.
"It was the moment when Liverpool’s community said ‘enough is enough’," they said.
Cashman was due to be sentenced on Monday for Olivia's murder as well as the attempted murder of Joseph Nee, a career criminal who was the initial target of Cashman's bullets.
When Cashman needed a place to hide after the botched gangland hit, he sought refuge in the home of his ex-lover - the witness.
The woman, who cannot be named for legal reasons, told the court they had slept together just three times over the course of an affair she conducted with dad-of-two Cashman.
Cashmman accused the woman of framing him in revenge because he would not leave his girlfriend, Kayleeanne Sweeney.
Insisting he was “a dad, not a killer”, Cashman said: “I’m not a bad drug dealer who sells Class A drugs, I don’t do anything bad.”
When he murdered Olivia, Cashman was living in a detached home owned by Christopher Gibney, who is wanted over a £186million cocaine plot.
However, the witness told the court Cashman “groomed” her into becoming “friends with benefits”. She said he was a "good listener" and made her feel "giddy".
The night of Olivia's death, Cashman “garden-hopped” through the streets to let himself into her home through the back door and tapped her on the leg to wake her up.
He told her he "didn't know where else to go" and that he trusted her. The witness had no idea a little girl had been shot and only found this out the morning after, when she saw a newspaper article.
She claimed in court she “could not understand” why Cashman turned up that night and “destroyed my life” by asking for help and involving her in his crimes.
Against Cashman's wishes, she called her boyfriend and when he arrived, she heared the name “Joey Nee” being mentioned
He boyfriend told Cashman he "don't wanna hear it" but she said she then heard him tell her boyfriend "I've done Joey".
This was the compelling evidence that would help sway the jury.
Early in the morning of September 4, Cashman was arrested by armed police at a friend's flat. He was released on conduitional bail after two days in custody, triggering a major surveillance operation by the National Crime Agency (NCA), who had evidence that Cashman was preparing to flee the country before he could face a court.
NCA branch commander Mick Maloney said he "sought to disrupt the investigation" during this period by changing his patterns, lifestyle and location.
But late in September, Cashman was arrested for a second time and was charged with Olivia's murder on October 1.
DUring the police inquiry, Cashman's lover was arrested on suspicion of assisting an offender. She claimed she was petrified of speaking out and admitted to telling "little white lies" during her initial police interviews in order to protect her family.
“I was woken up that night by a guy doing a dreadful thing and putting my life in danger. I was petrified to speak about Tommy. I’ve got to come home, he’s going to want to see me, what I have been speaking about. I was mortified I have been put in this situation," she told the jury.
She went on to explain that she ended up “breaking down” because she “physically couldn’t hold it inside me no more”.
“I don’t know what my life will hold in the next few years,” she added.
The witness would now have a choice as to whether she joined the witness scheme run by the NCA's UK Protected Persons Service, which would neccessitate her being cut off from friends and family.
Merseyside's police service hoped the evidence from Cashman's ex-lover would provide a turning point in their battle against organised crime and break down the code of silence within certain parts of the community.
Baker urged others to follow the witness’s example and do the “right thing” in future investigations.
“Her evidence was powerful and emotional, and most importantly, she spoke the truth,” he said.
