Police investigating two Monday night shootings in south Manchester say they are not linked to weekend attacks 24-hours earlier.

Officers were scrambled to Longsight after reports of gunshots on Longden Road shortly before 7pm on Monday night.

Within minutes they were told that another gunshot had been heard around half-a-mile away on Alma Road, in Levenshulme .

In both incidents, a white Range Rover had been spotted by witnesses.

An SUV matching the description was later found abandoned and engulfed in flames a short distance away on Elton Avenue.

The dramatic incidents happened less than 24-hours after thugs carried out two terrifying attacks just minutes apart in Longsight and Levenshulme.

But police say that the incidents are unconnected to two Sunday night attacks in the same area.

(Image: Helen Power)

In the first instance, at 8.30pm on Sunday, a group of men pulled over onto Lindsay Avenue in Levenshulme, in a 4x4 vehicle.

The gang, who were all armed with knives, approached a driver who was sitting in his car and threatened him. He was hit before the group fled from the scene.

Then 15 minutes later, a group of balaclava-clad men used a sledgehammer to smash the window of a car on West Grove, in Longsight, on Sunday night at 8.45pm.

The group then pulled up in a black Nissan X-trail at 8.45pm and smashed the windows of a Seat Leon car with a sledgehammer.

(Image: Google)

Detectives have ruled out any link between the incidents on Sunday night and the dramatic reports on Monday night.

Senior officers have stressed that there is no threat to the wider community, but they've urged any witnesses to come forward to help catch the culprits.

A Greater Manchester Police spokesperson said the Range Rover has been taken away from the scene for forensic investigation.

They added: “The incidents on Monday are not believed to be linked to the incidents on Sunday.”

Scores of officers were still in Levenshulme on Tuesday morning as investigations into the incidents continued.

Alma Road remains closed at the railway arch near Tesco Metro on the A6 Stockport Road.

Commuters, parents and staff trying to reach Alma Park Primary School struggled to negotiate the area during rush hour as traffic built up around the cordon.

Anyone with information should contact police on 101 quoting reference number 1939 of 15/05/17 or the independent charity Crimestoppers, anonymously, on 0800 555 111.