Slain Olivia Pratt-Korbel laughs in video released the day her killer Thomas Cashman was sentenced
DOVECOT, LIVERPOOL: Slain Olivia Pratt-Korbel can be seen giggling and joking with her loved ones in a heartbreaking video released by her family just hours after her killer was sentenced to life in prison. The nine-year-old girl was murdered by career criminal Thomas Cashman, 34, at their home in Dovecot, Liverpool, in August 2022.
In the emotional video, the girl appeared to do the iconic hair flip before pretending to be a model and doing a catwalk in a straight line with one hand on the hip in her family's living room. In another video the jolly little Olivia, whips her hair into a nozzle of a vacuum cleaner, trying the viral trend to tie a ponytail while bursting into huge crackles.
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The murder of Olivia Pratt-Korbel: Mom Cheryl's anguished screams revealed after 9-year-old was shot
BREAKING: Thomas Cashman, 34, has been jailed for life with a minimum term of 42 years at Manchester Crown Court for the murder of nine-year-old Olivia Pratt-Korbel who was shot in her home in Dovecot, Liverpool, last August. pic.twitter.com/UaOW5GGENI
— TalkTV (@TalkTV) April 3, 2023
'I just can’t cope with the silence!'
The video was released after Olivia's mother, Cheryl Korbel, who read a statement to the court on Monday, April 3, highlighting how much she missed her little girl and that it has been impossible for her to deal with the loss of her child. Taking to the witness box at Manchester Crown Court, the devastated mother said she "can't cope" with the silence that Olivia has left behind. Korbel said, "Liv never stopped talking, literally never, even if she wasn’t directly talking to anyone she would still be chatting away. The thing I miss most is hearing her say 'mum.'"
She added, "I just miss hearing her voice, its just so quiet, I would do and give anything in the world to have her chatting to me," reported Express. "It is so very lonely without her. Everything is just so quiet, I just can’t cope with the silence." Olivia's killer Cashman's alleged target was drug dealer Joseph Nee, 36, who had run into the building where Pratt-Korbel lived. CCTV footage showed Nee trying to take refuge inside Olivia's house after the mother opened the front door to investigate a commotion. Olivia was standing behind her mother who was trying to stop the intruder from entering her home. "A shot has been fired, which we believe has hit Cheryl, injuring her, and then fatally wounding Olivia," Detective Chief Superintendent Mark Kameen said.
Bounty released on career criminal Thomas Cashman
Cashman was later charged with her killing and is currently kept under isolation in prison after it was revealed that gangsters have reportedly placed a £250,000 ($307,265) bounty on him. The 34-year-old has been linked to as many as three other unsolved murders. "His knowledge and testimony could cause a world of pain for some very big criminals who do not want their activities being looked at. He has nothing to lose — he is cornered. There’s lifers who will be mixing with him in months and years to come who will not think twice about carrying it out," sources reportedly said. Criminals in the north and around jails have received news of the bounty via the encrypted app Telegram, The Sun reported. In exchange for his testimony, Cashman will seek extra checks on his welfare and a better cell, in return. He will also seek a better prison in the coming years.