He was shot dead as he tried to enter his home, six years on his family are still hunting for answers

Six years after the brutal murder of Leroy Ottey, his family and the police are still seeking answers. Known to his loved ones as Mari, Leroy was gunned down by an unidentified shooter as he tried to enter his family home on Alderson Road in Wavertree.

He had stepped out the door of a taxi around 10.40pm on October 17, 2018. The assailant fired bullets into rooms where his baby nephew was sleeping and where his mother and sister were preparing for bed.

Despite six arrests by Merseyside Police on suspicion of murdering the 25-year-old, no charges have been filed following his death.

Detectives suspect a black Audi Quattro S3 was prowling the area from early evening, repeatedly parking near what would become a murder scene. After Leroy was shot, the car left the scene, was involved in several crashes before being abandoned and set alight on Abbeystead Road in Childwall, reports the Liverpool Echo.

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In an effort to encourage people to come forward with information, the ECHO is reissuing an appeal for information more than six years after Leroy's death. On the fifth anniversary of the murder, the ECHO spoke to local residents about how the killing had shaken the community.

The road, linking Picton Road and Toxteth Park cemetery, is a typical Liverpool street, lined with terraced houses behind small gates. A local woman, who wished to remain anonymous, recounted: "We had been away and had just come back that night. I had just let my mate go and I saw all the flashing lights and wondered if someone was ill. I went to the door and looked outside and everyone was screaming."

"Someone said 'a lad has been shot'. The police were everywhere. They cordoned off the top and bottom of the road for days. I remember the road was packed with loads of cars. Police were walking up and down asking questions - constables first and then detectives."

"I think they came to ours three times. That shooting was horrendous. Everyone is just trying to live. I didn't know the family but I know they moved away. I don't think they had lived in that house for long. It's terrible they were forced away from the area by this."

Leroy's older sister Dana, also known as Carona, spoke to the ECHO a year after his death about how the family had to cease operating their business Sista Sue's in Lodge Lane when they lost the family's "backbone".

She told the ECHO in 2019: "He was just really humble, quiet. He only spoke when he was spoken to and was a family man - his family was his world, adored us."

Leroy's tragic shooting, coinciding with his niece's fifth birthday and his mother's birthday, has left both anniversaries forever overshadowed by heartache. Kevin Clague, from Merseyside Police’s Serious Crime Review Unit, remarked: "It is heartbreaking for Leroy's family that six years have now passed, and they have still not had justice. We know that there are people living in the community who have the answers to their questions and for whatever reason have still not come forward."

He continued, "I would appeal to those people to do the right thing and speak up. Any little piece of information could be key to our investigation and could help to get justice for Leroy's family. If you have information that can help with the investigation then we urge you to search your conscience and tell us what you know."

The police are urging anyone with relevant details to reach out through @MerPolCC or call 101 with reference 1840004063, promising sensitive treatment of the information shared.

Alternatively, individuals can provide information anonymously through Crimestoppers at 0800 555 111.