Patrick Lacey and Bernard Flynn walked out of Walton prison on a Friday afternoon in early autumn after prosecutors dropped all charges against them, including attempted murder and conspiracy to murder, in connection with a shooting in Huyton. The pair had been held on remand since February, when they were originally charged.
Lacey, a former professional footballer who came through Liverpool FC's academy, was pictured with his arms raised in celebration as he left the prison, clutching his belongings in bin bags and holdalls. The images were widely circulated on social media.
Surprise Court Hearing
The release capped a remarkable day for Lacey, who earlier that morning had been running a charity marathon within the grounds of HMP Liverpool, apparently unaware he was due in court the same afternoon. The case had not appeared on any publicly published lists for Liverpool Crown Court, although it is unclear whether the hearing was held before another court centre.
A source told the ECHO that Lacey was only informed of his impending court date midway through his 26-mile run, with the news having distracted him and caused his pace in the remainder of the race to drop off significantly. Lacey was subsequently said to have remarked "it was the best day of his life, because he'd run a marathon and been freed from prison."
Remaining Defendants
The unexpected turn left two defendants, John Hughes and John Jones, to face the jury at the Queen Elizabeth II Law Courts. In their cases, the alleged offences were dropped to the lesser charge of possession of a firearm with intent to cause fear of violence, which carries a maximum term of 10 years.
Both Lacey and Flynn were referenced throughout the trial, with Lacey said to have been in communication with the intended target of the shooting, Jordan Thompson, also known as "Dusty," in the hours beforehand before apparently driving Hughes and Jones to the vicinity of the attack. Flynn's DNA was detected on the internal fore end of the sawn-off shotgun used to shoot the victim, Leejay Heavey, in the legs.
Trial Details
Jurors heard that Jones and Hughes had been riding a Sur-ron e-bike when they fired two rounds from a sawn-off shotgun in the direction of Leejay Heavey after "asking if he was Dusty" and "if he'd come out of Dusty's house" on the evening of November 28 2025. Alex Leach KC, prosecuting, told the court that shooting this innocent victim "had not been their intended plan," which had instead been to "intimidate Jordan Thompson."
Mr Heavey, described as being "in the wrong place at the wrong time" and "having nothing to do with" Dusty, was struck in the lower leg, resulting in pellets becoming lodged in his bones and one of his calf muscles being surgically removed. Jones and Hughes fled the scene on the motorbike, leading to a police chase in which they ditched the Beretta double-barreled 12 gauge shotgun in the car park of the Oak Tree pub.
In his evidence, Jones claimed he had been "seeing a girl and doing a drugs run" at the time of the shooting. Asked by his counsel Gordon Cole KC whether he had any involvement in the incident, he replied: "I was never on an e-bike. I can't drive." Hughes, represented by Richard Littler KC, told the court he had been in Nottingham when Mr Heavey was shot, maintaining he had been friends with Dusty. The prosecution alleged he had fled Merseyside for Nottinghamshire the day after the shooting before being arrested in the East Midlands city on December 1, with his phone found snapped in two and one half of the device dunked into a bowl of soup.
Jones and Hughes were convicted of the firearms offence on Thursday afternoon, having exchanged a fist bump in the dock as the verdicts were returned. They will return to court to be sentenced next week. The ECHO contacted the Crown Prosecution Service for comment regarding its decision to withdraw charges completely against Lacey and Flynn and to drop the counts of attempted murder and conspiracy to murder in relation to Hughes and Jones, but no response had been received at the time of publication.
Lacey began his career with Tranmere Rovers before joining Manchester United and LFC's academies, later playing for Altrincham, Barrow, Accrington Stanley, Southport, Chester and Warrington Rylands. The 33-year-old's sporting career also saw him fight professionally as a boxer, most recently featuring in a bout at the M&S Bank Arena in February this year.
