A gangster jailed over the murder of Rhys Jones will reportedly be released from prison tomorrow.
James Yates, who supplied the revolver which killed 11-year-old Rhys in 2007, is said to be delighted after winning parole.
Yates, 30, has been deemed to be no longer a threat to society by the Parole Board.
He was sentenced to 12 years in prison for his role in Rhys’ death but the news of his release will likely devastate the victim’s parents.
James Yates (left) was jailed for his part in the murder of Rhys Jones but will be released from prison tomorrow. Sean Mercer (right) was the killer and was jailed for life
Rhys Jones was just 11-years-old when he was gunned down in Liverpool by Sean Mercer
A source told The Sun: ‘Yates is a serial criminal and a nasty piece of work. Although he didn’t pull the trigger, he set the wheels firmly in motion for Rhys’s death.
‘His release is devastating news. How many chances does he get?’
Everton fan Rhys was returning from football practice in Croxteth, Liverpool, on 22 August 2007, when he inadvertently walked into a gang fight and was shot in the neck.
Sean Mercer, then aged 16, was a member of the Croxteth Crew and embroiled in a bitter territorial dispute with the Strand Gang.
When he heard they had strayed onto his ‘patch’, he cycled on his BMX bike to the Fir Tree pub armed with a First World War Smith & Wesson revolver and fired three times at his rivals.