Thomas Cashman faces prison showdown with gangster brother of pal gunned down in brutal underworld feud
KILLER Thomas Cashman is set for a prison showdown with the brother of a close friend gunned down ten years ago.
Karl Bradley’s body was found laced with bullets in a snow covered garden in Penshaw Close, Liverpool.
The Liverpool man, 31, a close friend of Cashman, was shot several times.
Cashman was not charged with the murder but he was said to have been particularly close to the unsolved crime.
Karl’s brother Kirk is currently serving out a 22 year jail sentence for leading a ruthless gang that organised contract violence
across Merseyside.
Sources in Liverpool have said that Kirk will be keen to discuss the matter with Cashman.
The child killer is now facing the possibility of a whole life sentence after he was found guilty of murdering nine-year-old Olivia Pratt-Korbel.
GUNNED DOWN
The Sun has been told that Cashman was a friend of Karl Bradley’s and had spent time with him on the day of the murder.
Sources said that Cashman had been out drinking with Karl on the night of March 21.
There are claims Bradley was shot in the back as they said goodnight to each other.
The Sun understands that Kirk wants revenge for his brother’s death and is not afraid to confront powerful individuals in the prison system if he needs to.
In the years after the shooting, Karl’s partner posted tributes to him on social media.
In 2015 she posted a photograph of the couple together with the words: “2 years ago today my angel was taken away.
“Rest in peace Karl miss you forever always.”
Pictures on social media showed how the couple enjoyed a glamorous lifestyle together, enjoying regular trips overseas. It is not clear what Karl did for a living.
There is no suggestion his partner was involved in crime or knew of this.
Police have made several arrests in relation to the murder but nobody has been charged.
BROTHERS IN ARMS
Kirk Bradley organised a wave of violence across Merseyside in 2009 and 2010. Enemies were shot and hand grenades thrown at family homes.
In one incident an off-duty paramedic was shot in his own home in a case of mistaken identity.
One victim had to have leg amputated after being shot while in a phone box.
Bradley and his partner in crime Tony Downes escaped from a prison van bound for court in 2011.
The two men were later hunted down in Holland and brought back to the UK to face justice.
They were ordered to serve minimum 22 year terms during a hearing at Woolwich Crown Court in 2012.
MAFIA ENFORCER
Yesterday The Sun revealed how Cashman was a gunman who worked for a powerful and highly secretive drug mafia rooted in the Knowsley area of Merseyside.
The so called Huyton mafia control drug routes from Europe into the UK and vice like grip on the streets of Liverpool.
The organised crime unit has been linked to murders and hand grenade attacks across the city.
They also have strong links to Spain and Holland through their involvement in the drug trade.
The mafia like gang has long been associated with the use of hand grenades, automatic weapons and the use of torture.
Police in the UK have been at war with the gang for the last decade, placing key individuals under heavy surveillance.
That kid knows a lot and there will be a lot of worried people out there now.
But there is now speculation that Cashman might be tempted to inform on his former associates in return for a release from prison when he is older.
The Sun understands Cashman has special knowledge of the crime groups organisation and financial connections.
Cashman was trusted with the task of enforcing the will of feared godfathers.
But one insider has suggested the killer could turn in his former bosses in return for a shorter sentence.
The man said: “That kid knows a lot and there will be a lot of worried people out there now.
“Will he want to do a deal to enjoy some fresh air when he is older.
Cashman was found guilty thanks to the testimony of a former lover who reported him to the police.
The woman was so disgusted with Cashman’s crime she told cops: “There is no such thing as a grass when it involves a nine-year-old.”
The witness – who cannot be named — reported Cashman to police and spent two days being cross-examined in court by his barrister.
She will now be placed in a witness protection programme while Cashman faces life in prison.
Cashman will be sentenced on Monday.