|PIC1|Police charged a 17-year-old on Wednesday with the murder of Liverpool schoolboy Rhys Jones in August last year.

They charged three youths, aged 15, 16 and 17, and two men, 24 and 25, with assisting an offender. The 16-year-old was also charged with possession of a firearm.

"As this case has developed we have been carefully examining and assessing the evidence in order to come to a charging decision at the earliest possible opportunity," said Helen Morris of the Crown Prosecution Service.

"Having carefully considered all the material provided by Merseyside police I haved made the decision that there is sufficient evidence," she added.

The 11-year-old was shot in the neck in the Liverpool suburb of Croxteth after returning from football practice, fuelling fears of rising youth crime and gang violence.

All those charged were detained after a series of dawn raids involving more than 100 officers in Croxteth.

The alleged killer and the three other teenagers will appear at Liverpool Magistrates Court on Thursday. None can be named for legal reasons.

The two men charged with assisting an offender, Melvyn Coy, 24, and Gary Kayes, 25, will also appear.

Three people aged 49, 50 and 54 as well as a 16-year-old have been released on bail pending further inquiries.

A 20-year-old man remains in custody and is being questioned by detectives. A 21-year-old woman was released without charge.