Anthony ‘Tony’ Lawlor was the third murder in a matter of months as a suspected dispute between two families reached a boiling point
A tidal wave of violence swept across Merseyside as a suspected rivalry between two families saw three men gunned down in the street. Yesterday marked 23 years since Anthony ‘Tony’ Lawlor, 45, was gunned down outside some shops in Netherley as his mum watched on.
The horrific daylight violence, that also saw a stray bullet hit an 11-year-old boy, resulted in the third murder in a matter of months as a suspected dispute between the Lawlors and the Clarke family reached a boiling point. The first explosion of violence occurred on May 19 2001 when Tony’s younger brother Stephen was shot dead as he left a party near his home in Netherley.
Peter Clarke, then a 23-year-old former soldier, was accused of the crime, which was believed to be motivated by “ill feeling” between the two families, who were both big players in the “door wars” of pub and club security. As Clarke was hauled into custody to await trial, another murder shocked the city when his older brother Ian – a 32-year-old dad-of-three – was shot in his car at a red light at the junction of Rocky Lane and Belmont Road, Tuebrook, on September 8 of the same year.
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But before the dust had the chance to settle, gunshots rang out on the streets again just over a month later when Tony was killed in yet another suspected revenge attack. The 45-year-old had been outside some shops on Middlemass Hey, Netherley, on October 11 when a gang of armed men pulled up in a transit van and one of them opened fire. The murder was witnessed by his mum Maisie Lawlor – but his killer was never caught.
With a killer still on the run and a family without answers, the ECHO has looked back at the events of October 11 2001 in a reignited bid to bring the gunman to justice. The ECHO previously reported Mr Lawlor was attacked just seconds after he had dropped his mum off at the shops.
Highlighting the horrific impact gun crime has on those in the community around it, it was revealed an 11-year-old boy – not linked to Mr Lawlor – was hit in the leg by a stray bullet. He was later released from hospital and told the ECHO he was looking forward to being back out with his mates playing football.
However, Merseyside Police acting Assistant Chief Constable Mike Langdon said: “This incident, where an innocent child is caught up in the fatal shooting of a man, is a whole new dimension to crime on Merseyside.” Tragically, just six years later another 11 year old boy would lose his life when Sean Mercer opened fire in a Croxteth street, and a stray bullet struck and killed Rhys Jones.
Merseyside Police revealed that Mr Lawlor was confronted by a large, masked man all in black carrying a handgun. He was chased onto a nearby area of wasteland before he was shot down. Detectives revealed his mum, who was in her late 60s at the time, came upon the horrific scene of her son lying on the ground, dying.
The ECHO previously reported: “Blind to her own safety she ran to the gunman and began hitting him with her two plastic shopping bags. He screamed at her to get back before running off to a waiting blue Ford transit van where he was joined by three other men. Merseyside Police told the ECHO that the three men had “body builder types”.
It was also revealed the escape vehicle was found ablaze a short distance away shortly after. Detectives said it had been stolen from east Merseyside in June and was carrying false plates. It was also revealed a BMW 322i, which may have also been on false plates, was seen leaving the scene shortly after. It too was found on fire several miles away.
Following the third shooting, ACC Langdon vowed the police would step up armed patrols in the city to reassure the public and try to stop the scourge of gun crime. Mr Lawlor’s mum Maisie, who passed away in 2013 without getting justice for her sons, told the ECHO in November 2021: “I am still grieving for Stevie but now it is double the pain. I keep getting flashbacks of it, seeing Tony jumping as he tried to get out of the way of the bullets.
“The thing that hurts me the most is that after they shot him again and again and again, one of them leaned over and looked right at him to check he was dead.” A family spokesperson also said they had been overwhelmed by the kindness of the local community in the days after the shooting of the keen fisherman.
To this day, all three killings remain unsolved. Peter Clarke was found guilty of Stephen’s murder in December 2001 – but was freed after a re-trial at Manchester Crown Court. Meanwhile, the murders of both Ian Clarke and Tony Lawlor remain shrouded in mystery.
Merseyside Police has said measures can be put in for anyone who is able to provide information that could lead to the cases finally being solved. Though acquitted of murder, Peter Clarke soon found himself behind bars again after organising a massive drugs conspiracy, shipping hire cars full of cocaine and cannabis from Merseyside to Northern Ireland with the help of his brother, Stephen.
They had also amassed a huge stash of weapons, including an Ingram machine pistol, Glock handguns, a sawn off pump action shotgun, machetes, silencers and body armour. The gangsters were jailed for more than 26 years combined in November 2013. Later, it was revealed Peter Clarke had been linked to the Croxteth Young Guns (CYG) gang which terrorised the streets of north Liverpool.
His brother Stephen was linked to the infamous Wolfpack gang of the late 1980s, whose members were picked for their street fighting prowess. A spokesman for the North west regional crime unit (Titan) said at the time: “The public are a great deal safer with the likes of Stephen and Peter Clarke safely behind bars.”
In a further appeal for information about the murder of Tony Lawlor, Kevin Clague, head of the Merseyside Police’s serious crime review unit, told the ECHO: “Although 23 years have passed since Tony was killed, we are still determined to get justice for his family. A murder investigation is never closed, and we are taking this opportunity to appeal again to the community for help with our investigation.
“Loyalties can change over time and we believe that there are people in the community who know who was responsible. If those people are in a different situation and now feel able to assist, I would urge them to come forward and help us to get closure for Tony’s family.”
