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Boy and brothers jailed for killing near Burger King in Bootle

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Image source, Merseyside Police

Image caption,

Jay Byrne, 26, and Joseph Byrne, 25, were jailed for manslaughter

A 15-year-old boy who murdered a man in a "brutal attack" near a fast food restaurant has been jailed.

Merseyside Police said Christopher Molloy, 55, died after "a sequence of extreme violence" near Burger King in Bootle in July 2022.

Det Ch Insp Ben Dyer said the attack was "hard to comprehend" and had "shocked the whole community".

Brothers Joseph and Jay Byrne were also given prison sentences for Mr Molloy's manslaughter at Liverpool Crown Court.

The force said Mr Molloy was attacked near Bootle Strand in the early hours of 12 July following an altercation close to the restaurant.

He was left on unconscious on the ground before Jay Byrne then returned "to deliver a sickening further kick to Christopher's head", a representative said.

Mr Molloy died in hospital a week later.

'Awful'

The boy, who cannot be named for legal reasons, and the brothers had admitted manslaughter, but the teenager was found guilty of murder following a trial.

He was sentenced to life with a minimum term of eight years.

Jay Byrne, 26, of no fixed address, was sentenced to 10 years six months in prison, while Joseph Byrne, 25, of Linacre Road, Litherland, was sentenced to nine years nine months.

Following the sentencing, Det Ch Insp Dyer said "three dangerous people" had been removed from the community "for the foreseeable future".

"This was a brutal assault which left Christopher critically ill, and despite the best efforts of medical staff, he sadly lost his life a week later," he said.

"Not only did their attack leave Christopher unconscious on the ground, Jay Byrne then returned to the scene to deliver a sickening further kick to Christopher's head.

"Ultimately, all three have been proven to have taken a man's life in a sequence of extreme violence which is hard to comprehend."

He said he hoped the sentencing could give Mr Molloy's family and friends "some comfort as they continue to come to terms with the awful events of that night".

"I'd like to thank all of those people who provided information during our investigation, which understandably shocked the whole community," he added.

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