Three men have been charged in connection with multiple stabbings that took place outside an LGBTQ+ bar in Liverpool. The incident took place near GBar on Eberle Street, with Merseyside Police saying it is suspected that an “altercation” had first broken out between two groups inside the venue.

Officers were called to the scene at around 6:35am on Saturday, September 19, and found three victims injured. They were taken to hospital, where one remains in stable condition. Authorities also recovered a knife at the scene, which is being forensically examined.

They launched a “relentless” manhunt in the early hours of September 20, ultimately arresting three men two days later following police enquiries, including CCTV, forensic and witness investigations.

Appearing at Wirral Magistrates’ Court on Wednesday, September 23, 31-year-old Patrick Morgan and 18-year-old Jonny Gee were charged with two counts of Section 18 wounding with intent, violent disorder and possession of a bladed article. 22-year-old Stephen Gee was also charged with one count of Section 18 wounding, violent disorder and possession of Class B controlled drugs. All three remain in custody, and enquiries are ongoing.

Speaking about the case, Detective Chief Inspector Lisa McNaughton reassured the community that “While the incident happened outside a known LGBTQ+ bar… there is no suggestion from our enquiries so far that the incident has a hate crime element.”

Liverpool BCU Chief Superintendent Natalie Perischine said, “We have a zero-tolerance approach to anyone who chooses to carry a weapon in the city centre and my message to those individuals is ‘we will hunt you down’.”

She added, “Officers have been working round the clock to identify those responsible for this shocking incident in the early hours of Sunday morning. Within hours of it taking place we had executed a number of warrants and now have three people in custody.”

Perischine concluded, “We know how important it is that people who live, work and socialise in Liverpool city centre, feel safe and I want the public to be reassured that we are doing everything in our powers to find violent criminals and put them behind bars.”

Following the stabbings, Liverpool City Council’s licensing and gabling sub-committee decided to suspend GBar’s premises licence with immediate effect. A further licensing hearing is expected in October.