Abusive ex-boyfriend cleared of manslaughter after partner blamed him for her death in suicide note

13 January 2025, 12:24 | Updated: 13 January 2025, 13:48

A man has been found not guilty of manslaughter of his 23-year-old ex-girlfriend after he was accused of driving her to suicide in a final note before her death.

Ryan Wellings, 30, from Bispham in Lancashire, had been accused of the manslaughter of girlfriend Kiena Dawes following a sustained period of domestic abuse.

Dawes had written a suicide note saying "Ryan Wellings killed me" shortly before leaving their nine-month-old daughter with a friend and taking her own life on a railway line on July 22, 2022.

On Monday, Wellings from Bispham, in Lancashire, was found guilty of assault and prolonged domestic violence towards his partner by the jury.

He had previously denied manslaughter, but became the first defendant to be tried before a jury accused of the unlawful killing of his partner after her suicide following domestic violence.

Prosecutors claimed a sustained campaign of abuse had driven the mother to take her own life, with the court hearing how the hairdresser, from Fleetwood in Lancashire, left a note saying "I was murdered" before her death.

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Ryan Wellings, who was stood in the dock, made no reaction as the verdicts were read out in silence to a packed courtroom.

Miss Dawes sister wept and her mother looked straight ahead as the defendant was cleared of manslaughter.

During the trial, Jurors were shown Kiena’s note, which read: "The end. I fought hard, I fought long. I went through pain no one could imagine.

"I was murdered. Ryan Wellings killed me. He ruined every bit of strength I had left. I didn’t deserve it.

"I hope my life saves another by police services acting faster. Don’t let bullies live free."

Only one other defendant has been convicted in such circumstances before, Nicholas Allen, who admitted before his trial in 2017 the manslaughter of his partner, Justene Reece.

Ms Dawes' suicide note, written on her phone, meant she had named and blamed her killer, "from beyond the grave", Wellings' trial heard.

But he was cleared of her manslaughter and convicted of assault and coercive and controlling behaviour towards Ms Dawes after a six-week trial at Preston Crown Court. Jurors heard Ms Dawes, a hairdresser from Fleetwood in Lancashire, had suffered two years of violence and abuse at the hands of Wellings.

She had been diagnosed with an emotionally unstable personality disorder, resulting in increased impulsivity, poor self-esteem and difficulty in relationships, a condition allegedly exploited by the defendant.

Bubbly and happy-go-lucky, she had been "swept off her feet" after meeting Wellings, a landscape gardener from Bispham, who had a previous conviction for battering his ex-partner, mother of his twin girls.

Wellings had Ms Dawes' name and face tattooed on his body within a week of meeting, and proposed marriage within three months.

But Ms Dawes later said her "fairytale" turned into a "nightmare" with Wellings, who had a vicious temper and regularly enjoyed cocaine and drink binges.

The abuse was detailed to the jury in hundreds of text messages between them, and from Ms Dawes to her friends.

From 2020-2023, 723 domestic abuse-related deaths were identified by police in England and Wales, of which 216 were suspected victim suicides, one study found.

Described by prosecutor Paul Greaney KC as an "entitled, aggressive bully" and by Ms Dawes' friends as a "horrible little bastard" with a jealous streak, he did not like being answered back - which, "triggers his anger".

His abuse of Ms Dawes included regular slapping and "ragging" by her hair and threats to use a drill to take out her teeth, and "make her look like Katie Piper" by throwing acid in her face.

He also sponged off her, unable to hold down work, securing and leaving 22 jobs and draining her of money while she worked two jobs.

Wellings claimed £15,000 in Covid loans during lockdown he spent on hotels, £1,800 golf clubs and drugs.

Wellings smiled and blew a kiss to his current girlfriend in the public gallery as he was led away.

The jury also heard phone messages she sent to Wellings in which she accused him of “terrorising” her.

“You’re a head f*** and you know it will ruin me,” she also wrote. "You’re a bully.”

Following the verdict, Judge Altham thanked jurors for their time and excused them from further jury service, should they wish, for the next 15 years.

Wellings will be sentenced on Thursday.

If you or someone you know are feeling emotionally distressed or suicidal, call Samaritans for help on 116 123 or email jo@samaritans.org in the UK.