Ryan Wellings sentencing: Latest updates as Kiena Dawes’ associate faces jail over abuse earlier than she took her personal life

Heavily tattooed Wellings has now appeared in the dock wearing a dark suit and tie.

Judge Robert Altham, the Honorary Recorder of Preston, has entered the courtroom which is also packed with representatives of the media.

His sentencing remarks will be filmed for broadcast later on today.

Ryan Wellings is due to appear in the dock at Preston Crown Court for his sentencing for assault occasioning actual bodily harm and coercive and controlling behaviour against his ex-girlfriend Kiena Dawes.

Wellings, 30, was on Monday found not guilty of the 23-year-old’s manslaughter after she killed herself by lying in front of a train following two-and-a-half years of physical and psychological abuse at his hands.

Friends and relatives of the hairdresser gathered in the public gallery to see him sentenced, including her mother Angela.

However there was no sign of his new girlfriend, Emma Croft, who blew him a kiss following the jury’s verdicts.

Wellings has been in custody since last June after being arrested for witness intimidation when he sent Kiena’s mother an abusive video hours after being charged.

Paul Greaney KC appears for the prosecution while John Jones KC represents Wellings.

Three Lancashire Police officers are facing disciplinary hearings over the case after the force referred themselves to the police watchdog.

It comes as Kiena begged police for help and documented her injuries from the abuse before she took her own life.

The Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC) launched an investigation into whether officers acted fast enough following concerns for Kiena’s safety.

It was previously announced one officer would face gross misconduct proceedings, with two others accused of misconduct.

• Watch police bodycam footage of Kiena speaking to police officers

Warning – calls contain upsetting details

999 calls made by Kiena Dawes before her suicide give a harrowing glimpse into the torment she suffered at the hands of her abusive partner.

In one disturbing audio clip, the 23-year-old tells how her head is ‘pouring with blood’ as she tries to console her crying baby.

During the trial, they heard calls made to emergency services in which Ms Dawes reported the horrific abuse she was being subjected to.

In one call, the helpless young mother can be heard begging for medical assistance after an attack.

Minutes later she rings back saying her ‘phone is going to end up breaking because it’s covered in blood’ and that things are ‘really bad’.

Listen to the calls below:

The suicide note left by Kiena Dawes was read out at Preston Crown Court during Ryan Wellings’ manslaughter trial.

Paul Greaney KC, prosecuting, read out her final words to jurors:

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 had dreams. I had a future at one point. That was taken away from me.

Wellings had admitted getting ‘heavy-handed’ with Ms Dawes, but claimed any injuries she suffered were accidental or as a result of him trying to restrain her.

Speaking outside court after the verdicts, Ms Dawes’s mother, Angela, condemned Wellings as a ‘monster’.

In an emotional statement surrounded by family, she said:

Today was for you Kiena. I am sorry that your voice has not been fully heard and that justice has not been done in the way we all hoped. I’m finding it almost impossible to put it into words just how big of an impact losing Kiena has been on all the family, her beautiful baby girl and all of her friends.

Kiena was a rare gem, she brought so much love and kindness to this world and to everyone that loved her. She was an extremely beautiful girl and was quite truly the sweetest, kindest, gentlest person I have ever known.

Kiena is missed so very much, every second of every day. Her baby girl was brought to my home a few hours after Kiena was found and has been in my full time care every since that tragic day. I cannot put it into words just how much it breaks my heart that her beautiful baby girl doesn’t have her mummy here because of that monster.

A violent boyfriend whose fiancée went on to kill herself after enduring years of sickening abuse at his hands was cleared of manslaughter at Preston Crown Court on Monday

Kiena Dawes, 23, had written a suicide note saying, ‘Ryan Wellings killed me’, before leaving their nine-month-old daughter with a friend and taking her own life on a railway line on July 22, 2022.

Jurors heard how Wellings repeatedly lashed out at the hairdresser, beating her while she was pregnant with his child, as well as threatening to drown her in a bath, drill her teeth and ‘make her look like Katie Piper’ by dousing her with acid.

The 30-year-old also urged Ms Dawes to kill herself, boasted that ‘hitting you is like hitting a man’ and, on one occasion, dunked her head in a bath and said: ‘Say goodbye to your baby’.

He was the first defendant to be tried before a jury accused of the unlawful killing of his partner after her suicide following domestic violence, but was found not guilty. He turned and blew a kiss to his new girlfriend as the verdict was read out, while Ms Dawes’ sister burst into tears.

Despite being cleared of manslaughter, Wellings was convicted of assault and coercive control for two years of violence and abuse.

• Read the full story here

Kiena Dawes was described by her mother Angela as the ‘sweetest, kindest and gentlest person’ following the conclusion of Ryan Wellings’ trial earlier this week.

The 23-year-old described Wellings as a ‘monster’ who had ‘killed me’ following their relationship in which she was subjected to prolonged domestic violence.

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.

Kiena had attempted to take her own life in the past, before her relationship with Wellings and his lawyers told the court her suicide was due to ‘multiple factors’.

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, the 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 ‘fairy tale’ turned into a ‘nightmare’ with Wellings, who had a vicious temper and regularly enjoyed cocaine and drink binges, the court heard.

Hello and welcome to our live coverage of the Ryan Wellings sentencing at Preston Crown Court.

Wellings, 30, was cleared of the manslaughter of his partner Kiena Dawes who took her own life after suffering years of abuse but was convicted of assault and coercive and controlling behaviour.

Kiena (pictured), a 23-year-old mother, left heir nine-month-old daughter with a friend before she killed herself on a railway line on July 22 2022.

The landscape gardener from Bispham, Lancashire, became the first defendant to face trial for the unlawful killing of his partner after her suicide following domestic violence.

Stick with us as we bring you live updates from Preston Crown Court from our reporter James Tozer.

• For help and support, call the Samaritans on 116 123 or go to samaritans.org