Parents' emotional appeal | The shooting | The 'aspirational' area | Croxteth gangs | Gun crime on the rise | "Slums come to suburbs"

When the leavers’ service was held a few weeks ago at Broad Square Primary School in Liverpool, 11-year-old Rhys Jones and his friends were told that a world of opportunities was waiting for them. They were urged to grab those opportunities with both hands.

But for Rhys they disappeared in a pub car park on Wednesday night when he was shot three times in the neck and left to die in his mother’s arms. Last night, a weeping Melanie Jones spoke of her bewilderment at her son’s killing.

“My baby was only 11. He didn’t deserve this,” she said. “He was shot in the back of his neck from behind, my baby. This should not happen, this should not be going on.”

How worried should we be about gun crime?

Serious gun crime is concentrated in particular parts of England; internationally, the country has a low death rate from guns

BACKGROUND

• Factfile: teenagers gunned down across UK

• Three murders in four days in South London

• We Shall Overcome, protesters sing at peace vigil

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• This shouldn't happen...please help us

• 'He fired more shots. He never flinched'

• Divided by aspiration but united by violence

Her husband, Stephen, 44, a retail manager with Tesco, added: “We are devastated, we have lost our world, the world has lost a good guy.”

Last night the mood among the community in Croxteth Park, where the family lives, was one of grief and anger as residents blamed the area’s gun and gang culture for taking the life of an innocent. As schoolfriends laid floral tributes at the spot where Rhys fell, churches held special services including a candlelit vigil to remember him.

Bernard Hogan-Howe, Merseyside’s chief constable, described the shooting as the most appalling crime that he had investigated in 20 years. Jacqui Smith, the Home Secretary, said last night that she would look at legislation that compelled witnesses of gun crime to give evidence to the police and courts. Ministers would also look at making membership of a gang an aggravating factor when judges sentence offenders.

Two teenagers, aged 14 and 18, were arrested yesterday as speculation grew that Rhys had inadvertently fallen victim to a gang feud. They were released on bail last night. Police stressed that Rhys and his family had no connection with violent groups.

Described by his former head teacher as “the most popular boy in the school”, Rhys was both academically gifted and a talented sportsman. Bright and outgoing, Everton Football Club was his passion. He was a season ticket-holder and he died while playing in his team’s shirt.

“Rhys was a boy who could have gone on to do so many things,” said the Rev Mark Coleman, Broad Square Primary School’s chairman of governors. “He might have been a brilliant doctor, he might have been anything. It’s such a waste of promise.”

Rhys was ten days away from beginning his studies at his new secondary school. Hours before his death he had been shopping with his mother for a new school uniform. Mrs Jones, 41, who was driven to the car park by a friend, knelt by her dying child and begged him: “Stay with us, son” as she waited for an ambulance to arrive.

The boy’s former head teacher, Elaine Spencer, described him as “a lovely, caring boy”. She added: “He was friendly, outgoing, completely mad about football and his personality endeared him to everyone. Rhys was also very bright and had just performed brilliantly in his SATs. We were expecting him to do exceptionally well at secondary school in September.”

Mr Hogan-Howe said: “They are a responsible family and Rhys was a responsible lad. They were innocent people going about their business last night when their lives were destroyed by this terrible and shocking crime.”

The Prime Minister, Gordon Brown, called the murder a heinous crime while David Cameron, the Tory leader who recently launched a campaign to tackle “anarchy in the UK”, said: “It’s an absolutely shocking murder.

“Of course all of the incidents are separate and horrific, but we do have a situation now where we have had a spate of children killing children and we have got to ask what’s going wrong in the country.”

Last year, 48 under-18s were arrested for gun crime in Merseyside.

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