A woman in her 50s and a man in his 20s were both stabbed during the incident on Tobruk Road in Huyton
A woman in her 50s and a man in his 20s were both stabbed during the incident on Tobruk Road in Huyton
A man will stand trial accused of attempted murder next year after police shot a suspect following a double stabbing. A woman in her 50s and a man in his 20s were both stabbed during the incident on Tobruk Road in Huyton in May last year.
Ryan Baker has since been charged with attempting to murder both Maxine Gurrell and Thomas Crowther and one of possession of a firearm with intent to cause fear of violence, namely a Sig Sauer P226 airgun. The 32-year-old, of Tobruk Road, appeared before Liverpool Crown Court this morning, Thursday, in order to face the alleged offences.
Appearing via video link to Ashworth Hospital with short dark hair and wearing a khaki green and navy blue Berghaus tracksuit top, Baker spoke only to confirm his name during the short hearing and was not asked to enter any pleas to the three charges. But a 10-day trial was scheduled to begin on January 18 next year.
Baker was given continued bail under the condition that he reside at Ashworth Hospital ahead of a case management hearing on May 22. Adjourning the case, Judge Stuart Driver KC said: “The next significant court hearing in this case is three weeks and a day, on Friday, the 22nd of May.
“The case is listed for trial on the 18th of January next year. I thank everybody who has attended today, and that is the end of today’s hearing.”
The ECHO previously reported that Merseyside Police were called to the scene on the Bluebell Estate shortly before 4.30pm on May 14 2025 after receiving reports of the stabbing, resulting in a suspect being shot by armed officers and taken to hospital for treatment. He was later detained under the Mental Health Act.
An air ambulance also attended the incident, with several roads in the area being cordoned off as a result. The force referred itself to the Independent Office for Police Conduct in the aftermath, with the watchdog subsequently finding that one shot was fired by officers.
Several eyewitnesses described hearing gunshots, with one woman saying she had mistaken the sound for fireworks. One neighbour said: “I’m terrified of letting my kids play outside. I hate living here, it’s not safe. Something needs to be done about the situation.”
Another woman added: “We heard all the sirens and the helicopter. When we came out to have a nose the police screamed at us to get back in the house.”
One resident, who was sitting in her nearby front garden at the time, stated that she heard a woman shouting “he’s stabbed me, he’s stabbed me” before PCs arrived and were heard saying “put the weapon down”. She told the ECHO: “Me and my friend were sat in the front garden when a police van came down the road quite slowly.
“I didn’t think anything of it but, as they drove down the road, I heard a screech from a man saying ‘I’ve been stabbed’. He came out into the road shouting ‘he’s stabbed me’. The lad was holding his neck and his abdomen.
“The police van slammed on and they started helping. Seconds later, the lady came out. She was shouting ‘he’s stabbed me, he’s stabbed me’. They were attacked in their own home.
“We were all rushed inside out house by the police when the firearms officers arrived. There was a lad outside my house who was a complete stranger, and even he was brought inside. We went into the back garden, and we heard the police shouting ‘put the weapon down’ and then we heard a shot fired.”
It was later confirmed that the woman who was injured in the incident sustained serious injuries to her face, back and arms, with the male victim sustaining minor injuries. The man who was shot was meanwhile left in a serious but stable condition as a result of a wound to his abdomen.
