Forensic officers are working at the Lighthouse Inn where 26-year-old Elle Edwards was shot dead on Christmas Eve.

The area immediately outside the pub and part of the car park remains behind a police cordon four days after Ms Edwards was killed while out with friends in Wallasey Village, Merseyside.

Flowers have been laid outside the pub with written tributes.

One reads: “To gorgeous Elle-May. Rest easy, you were the most beautiful soul.”

On Boxing Day, a man aged 30 from Tranmere was arrested on suspicion of murder and attempted murder, and a woman aged 18 from Rock Ferry was arrested on suspicion of conspiracy to murder.

Ms Edwards’ family has been left “devastated” and “inconsolable” by her death, police said in their appeal to the public for information.

Friends of Ms Edwards told Sky News they were dancing and enjoying a night out when “in a split second” everything changed.

Merseyside shooting: Two arrests after woman killed in Christmas Eve shooting at pub

‘We thought gunshots were fireworks’: Friends describe moment ‘gorgeous’ Elle Edwards was shot dead

Merseyside pub shooting: Woman shot dead on Christmas Eve named as 26-year-old Elle Edwards

Meg and Jess, who did not give their surnames, told Sky News they thought the gunshots they heard were fireworks until they saw their friend lying on the floor.

“We went to go get a drink and we were at the bar and we just heard bangs,” Jess said.

“The second I heard Elle, I was like, ‘It’s not, it’s not, it’s not’.

“I could see her on the floor, people around her trying to help her.

“You just feel hopeless, you can’t help, you can’t do anything.”

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‘We thought gunshots were fireworks’: Friends describe moment ‘gorgeous’ Elle Edwards was shot dead

Ms Edwards’ sister Meg, who lives in Dubai, had left the venue sometime earlier.

“It plays on your mind, knowing whether she should have gone home,” she said, adding: “We had been dancing and singing and now she’s on the floor.”

Members of the Wirral community have also been paying emotional tributes to Ms Edwards.

Wirral Borough Council leader Jeanette Williams said the “most heart-breaking aspect” was that she was not the intended target of the attack.

On Wednesday, Merseyside police renewed their appeal for anyone with information or dashcam, CCTV or mobile phone footage to come forward.

Chief Constable Serena Kennedy pledged a “relentless” search for those responsible for the “callous and cold-blooded murder”.

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