London- A member of a teenage gang who shot dead 11-year-old schoolboy Rhys Jones in Liverpool in the summer of 2007 was Tuesday sentenced to a minimum prison term of 22 years.

A judge at Liverpool Crown Court passed sentence on 18-year-old Sean Mercer after a highly-emotional trial. The murder of Jones, in August 2007, shocked Britain and made headlines around the world.

The sentence for Mercer, who was 16 at the time of the attack, was seen as a "deterrent" against youth gangs involved in gun and knife crime in Britain, commentators said. (dpa)