Martin Wilson and Connor Smith were sentenced to 32 years’ imprisonment for the murder of Nyle Corrigan
Suspects Walking Along Field
This is the moment two masked and hooded gunmen pulled out the murder weapon after they saw their teenage target approaching on his electric bike. Martin Wilson, 37, and Connor Smith, 26, were convicted this week of the murder of 19-year-old Nyle Corrigan, who was fatally shot in the back by the two gunmen on Boode Croft in Stockbridge Village on November 12 2020.
Wilson, of no fixed abode but of Huyton, and Smith, of Midway Road in Huyton, were both sentenced to a minimum of 32 years’ imprisonment. Following their sentencing this week, Merseyside Police and the Crown Prosecution Service have provided CCTV footage to the ECHO of the two killers just before the fatal shot was fired.
The CCTV footage is taken shortly before 6.30pm on the night of the shooting and shows the two men, wearing masks and gloves and with their hoods pulled up, walking along a piece of open land at the back of Haywood Road. The men had been captured on CCTV earlier the same night walking from Brandearth Hey towards the Denecliff flats, off Haswell Drive.
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The prosecution told the jury during the six-and-a-half week trial that this journey was the Wilson and Smith on foot making their way towards the “kill point”. Although their faces are covered, the prosecution said a reflective strip on the abdomen area of one of the men matched the clothing worn by Smith earlier in the evening.
The footage shows the men waiting for Mr Corrigan before springing a trap. Upon seeing the teenager approaching on his electric Sur-Ron bike, the first man – Wilson – alerts the other to his presence and puts a hand into his jacket pocket. The prosecution said although the weapon couldn’t be seen, this was the moment Wilson pulled out the gun.
They then walk out of camera before they take the shot. Another piece of footage, played in court but not released to the press, showed the two men hiding behind some bushes, before they emerge, exchange words with Mr Corrigan and shoot him once in the back. Although Wilson was the man who took the fatal shot, presiding judge Mr Justice Goose said the two men were equally culpable.
Sentencing, Mr Justice Goose told the men: “Nyle Corrigan was shot and killed by two men. They had prepared themselves for the killing, having obtained a Glock hand gun and ammunition, as well as two pairs each of black gloves, hats and face masks. They walked a secretive route in Stockbridge Village, Liverpool, which brought them to Boode Croft, where they knew they would find Nyle Corrigan.
“There they shot him in the back as he rode an electric bike. The bullet passed through his body completely, causing substantial internal injuries which led to his death at the side of the road. The two men then took away the electric bike, which was later abandoned in the Huyton area.”
Following the murder the men made efforts to cover up their involvement. Wilson returned home before he sent a message to his dad saying he had just woken up. He later gave a prepared statement to police saying he had been with a friend miles away from the scene of the incident.
Smith disposed of his clothing before he was given new clothes by Jamie Coggins, 28 and of the Spinney in Stockbridge Village. The pair then moved Smith’s belongings to a safe house overlooking the Mersey, before he fled to Spain via Portsmouth. Coggins was sentenced to four years in prison for assisting an offender.
Mr Justice Goose told the men: “Whilst the background to these offences involves the three of you in criminal offending, be it drugs or burglary, the reason for this murder was because Nyle Corrigan had shown disrespect, and that was not to go unpunished. In the days leading up to the shooting there was rising anger between Nyle Corrigan and his mother, with you and your associates Wilson.
“It led to threats the night before, on the 11th November, when a car with four or five men which included you Wilson, drove outside the house of Nyle Corrigan’s family. Those men wore masks and made it clear that they were looking for Nyle Corrigan. The next day he was shot and killed.”
