Gangland ‘fixer’ for Steven Gerrard goes on the run

Apr 15 2008 by Alan Weston, Liverpool Daily Post

AN UNDERWORLD enforcer who saved Liverpool FC star Steven Gerrard from a gangster nicknamed “The Psycho” was on the run from police last night.

John Kinsella, from Kirkdale, won the “total respect” of the Huyton-born midfielder and his family after putting a stop to a two-year hate campaign against him.

But yesterday the self-proclaimed gangland “fixer” was being hunted by detectives around the country after he fled court. He vanished after being granted bail by a judge, just a few minutes before a jury found him guilty of involvement in a £41,000 robbery.

Kinsella was warned not to leave the grounds of Lincoln Castle, the home of the city’s Crown Court, during a lunch-time adjournment.

But it is thought he simply strolled out of the front gate and disappear-ed minutes before court reassembled to learn he had been convicted.

Last night, police described him as “very dangerous” and said officers in Merseyside had been asked to help in the search for him.

Kinsella, 43, a boxer and martial artist, of Mile End, Kirkdale, had cited his work for Gerrard as an example of how he collected debts and “sorted out” problems for people.

The court heard how he was contacted by the star’s worried family after the player was “terrorised” by a man nicknamed “The Psycho”.

Kinsella said the man responsible, George Bromley Jnr, was a “violent figure” whose father, another gangland enforcer, had been “executed”.

He told the jury: “I know George Bromley Jnr is a very dangerous man. Steven was given armed police protection because they feared for his safety. I took steps. I spoke to George Bromley Jnr. I told him to stop it and leave him alone. After I had spoken to him, he followed my advice.”

The court was later read a letter from Gerrard's father, Paul – obtained after Kinsella went to his home – in which the claims were confirmed.

Mr Gerrard said that, for two years, “The Psycho” tried to extort money from his son and threatened to “maim” him, until Kinsella stepped in.

Kinsella, a judo and jujitsu expert, had already served a nine-year prison-term when he was asked by the family to put an end to Gerrard's ordeal.

He received the sentence at Liverpool Crown Court in October, 1991, for attempted robbery and carrying a firearm with intent to commit an offence.

The incident involved an attack by four men in masks and boilersuits on the now-defunct Quadrant Park nightclub, in Irlam Road, Bootle, in 1990.

Armed with shotguns, they hid in the club before grabbing terrified staff and trying to force open the safe once the venue had closed for the night.

But one worker managed to escape and alert police, who surrounded the building and arrested the robbers as they tried to make their getaway.

Sources revealed yesterday that Kinsella was also caught at an airport with a one-way ticket to Malaga last July while on bail for his latest offence.

Yet he was allowed to remain free after convincing police he had business interests in Spain and that he was simply heading off on a legitimate trip. Kinsella faced court to deny being involved in a robbery in which a nightwatchman at a haulage depot in Grantham, Lincolnshire, was tied up.

He was arrested on the M62, near Huddersfield, at the end of a 130mph chase after trailers of confectionery and detergent were taken in the raid.

After a two-week trial and almost eight hours’ deliberation by the jury, he was convicted of charges of robbery and dangerous driving.

Stephen McMullen, 49, of Phoenix Drive, Huyton, and James Muldoon, 28, of Lakenheath Road, Halewood, were also found guilty of robbery.

The fourth raider, Thomas Hodgson, 29, of Melwood Drive, West Derby, pleaded guilty to the charge as a result of the raid in March, 2006.

Det Con Helen Evans, of Lincolnshire police, said: “We will be liaising with Merseyside police to track him down as soon as possible.

“John Kinsella is a very dangerous man, and we urge anyone who sees him to contact their local police station or ring Crimestoppers.”

alanweston