MERSEYSIDE Police is to investigate claims made in court by a teenage gang member that he was paid £50 by a fixer to brandish guns on the BBC’s Panorama programme, the force said.

The 17-year-old, who cannot be identified because of his age, was filmed assembling a shotgun for the programme about guns and gang culture on Merseyside.

A Merseyside Police spokeswoman said: “We are investigating claims made by the 17-year-old in court about the fixer. We are going to look at who was involved in that transaction and whether we can identify the people involved in that transaction.”

The teenager, a member of the Marsh Gang, was approached by an intermediary and paid the cash to “show off” the weapons on camera, Liverpool Crown Court heard on Friday.

The 17-year-old pleaded guilty on December 11 last year to possession of a shotgun, a handgun and ammunition. He will be sentenced on January 23.

A Merseyside Police spokeswoman later said: “Following the broadcast of Panorama Young Gunmen on June 30 last year, Merseyside Police investigated both the criminal actions of individuals posing with guns and whether there was any substance to rumours that money had been exchanged.