ANXIOUS residents near a terrifying gangland shooting met with police last night in the search for reassurance.

Londoner Reece James Menzies was shot in the face in a flat in Roumelia Lane, Boscombe in the early hours of July 25.

So far no one has been charged with the crime.

Senior officers have stressed the shocking offence does not place Boscombe residents in immediate danger and said it was ‘a targeted attack, not a random gunman’.

But many residents are worried and hope their concerns will be taken on board by Dorset Police .

Helene Bowman-Brown of the Friends of Roumelia Lane said: “This was a crime that could have happened anywhere but, no matter how much you try to put in perspective, if someone has been shot in the street where you live it is worrying.

“It makes people concerned about going out at night. The shooting happened at 2.30am and people start to think about what could have happened if they were coming home at that time.”

Helene said traders are determined to carry on with business as usual and added: “We don’t let things like this get to us.”

But she said it is hard for residents to come to terms with the incident.

“This has spurred me on to do even more than we have done before to help people in this area. We hope to get a better community spirit.”

Helen praised Dorset Police, who have put more officers on the streets of Boscombe since the incident despite the demands of other murder inquiries and the Olympic sailing events in Weymouth.

“They are doing outstanding work bearing in mind how stretched they are. We have seen a lot more police – they have been fabulous.”

A police cordon around the murder scene has been lifted but officers remain at the premises, only allowing residents of the flats to enter.

We'll have a report of the meeting later.