Jessie James

Jessie James would have been 17-years-old of his life had not been cut short when he was murdered in Moss Side in September 2006. Jessie James was only 15 years old when he was shot dead on Saturday 9 September 2006.

Earlier that evening, Jessie had been out with a group of friends in Moss Side and had been refused access to a function at the West Indian Centre. He and his friends rode off on their bikes along Raby Street before they went into Broadfield Park, known locally as Rec Park. Once in the park they heard shots being fired. They rode off in different directions but when the rest of his friends regrouped a short time later Jessie was missing. They re-traced their steps, phoning Jessie's phone as they walked through the park. When they heard a phone ringing followed the sound and found Jessie's body. He had been shot several times. Police and ambulance crews were called but Jessie was already dead.

Since Jessie's death, officers from Greater Manchester Police's Major Incident Team have been working tirelessly to trace the people responsible for his murder. Many people have already contacted the police with information but there are still key individuals that officers need to speak to if they are to trace Jessie's killers.

A £20,000 reward is available for information leading to the arrest and conviction of Jessie's killers Detective Superintendent Shaun Donnellan, Senior Investigating officer for the murder, said: "Jessie was only 15 when he was gunned down in the park and today, as he should be celebrating his 17th birthday, his family are reminded that they will never see him grow up.

"Since the start of this investigation my team has received a lot of information from the community, the majority of whom are as committed as us to tracing Jessie's killers, but we still need a few key people to tell us what happened to Jessie. "I know there are still people out there who have information they have not yet given to the police and I would appeal to them to speak to us. "If these people are afraid to come forward for any reason I would like to reassure them that we have protective measures in place so no-one ever needs to know who you are.

"This can mean you don't have to attend court in person but give evidence behind a screen on a video with your voice disguised. No-one will ever know you did the right thing, but you will have the satisfaction of knowing you helped take a killer of the streets.

"If you have any information, no matter how insignificant it may seem, you still need to contact us. We need to make sure the people responsible for killing Jessie are taken off the streets." Incident room number: 0161 856 8751 Confidential phone or text 07940 960215. Crimestoppers 0800 555 111. Information can also be sent via the GMP website.