Danny Cahalane died following an acid attack at his home in Plymouth, Devon – a number of people including his ex-wife, Paris Wilson are currently on trial accused of his murder
The ex-wife of a drug dealer who died after a horrific acid attack is standing trial alongside six others accused of his murder. The court heard that the killing was allegedly ordered by his “boss” over an unpaid drug debt of £120,000.
Danny Cahalane, hailing from Plymouth, Devon, was rushed to hospital following the gruesome incident at a property on Lipson Road, Plymouth, on 21 February 2025.
The father-of-two died in hospital on 3 May 2025. Prosecutor Jo Martin KC informed the jury that the 38 year old was singled out due to a “large amount of money” he owed to his “boss”.
She claimed this dealer was a man known as Ryan Kennedy – also referred to by his alias Frost – who operated between Thailand, Spain and Dubai and is currently believed to be residing in Dubai.
Ms Martin revealed that Mr Kennedy had sent messages about possessing 320kg of cannabis in a shipping container which would have a wholesale value of £960,000 but could fetch around £3.2 million if sold in single gram deals.
The prosecutor stated that Mr Kennedy became “incensed” at Mr Cahalane’s “stalling” and failure to repay the money, initially orchestrating a kidnap attempt on him on 19 January 2025, followed by the fatal assault.
She said: “What does become abundantly clear from the messages is that Danny owed Frost in the region of £120,000, and Frost was not happy about that.
“Danny was also clearly not capable of finding the money and he, throughout the messages, gives excuses and tries to find ways to delay the need to hand over money.
“And all that happens is that Frost becomes increasingly incensed and agitated.”
Ms Martin revealed that Mr Cahalane had managed to speak to officers from his hospital bed before succumbing to his injuries, explaining how he’d racked up the debts after one of his junior drug dealers had scarpered without settling up.
He also admitted that he’d blown more of the cash through gambling.
Ms Martin stated: “He said that he knew that the man behind the attack on him was called Ryan Kennedy who had the nickname Frost.
“Danny said he had known Frost from when he, Frost, was a child. He had known him from growing up on a council estate – the Rockingham Estate in south-east London, just near the Elephant and Castle.”
Ms Martin explained that texts on Mr Cahalane’s mobile revealed menacing messages from Mr Kennedy, reports Plymouth Live.
One read: “Your gonna die….U jus need to die….You done me £80K…they coming up now…I’m gonna give them extra 40k to come and take your eyes out you’r head.”
She said that Mr Cahalane replied by saying “talking about switching me off, I’ve got the 46 covered, sorting for you, been long, I’m telling you I got my little girl my man is sorting tomorrow”.
Eight minutes following the botched kidnapping bid on January 19, Mr Kennedy fired off a message from Dubai declaring: “Close call? Mate I’m telling you they gonna burn gaffes down and your gonna die”, the court was told.
Detailing the second assault that claimed Mr Cahalane’s life, Ms Martin explained: “In the early hours of the morning of February 21 2025 two men broke into the home address of the victim Danny Cahalane.
“By the time the two men had driven off, Danny Cahalane had been the victim of an acid attack – sulphuric acid being thrown on him, burning into his whole body.
“Despite being treated in hospital for the next 10 weeks, Danny Cahalane died on May 3 2025 as a result of the horrific injuries he had received.
“There can be no doubt that Danny Cahalane was murdered. Whoever threw acid over him must have intended, at the very least, to cause him really serious bodily harm.”
She went on: “It was because Danny Cahalane was a drug dealer in Plymouth who owed a large amount of money to another drug dealer further up the chain of command.
“That man – a man you will get to know as Frost but whose real name is Ryan Kennedy – not only wanted his money back but also wanted to teach Danny Cahalane a very significant lesson for his lack of respect.”
Ten defendants are currently standing trial, with seven facing charges of Mr Cahalane’s murder alongside an alternative count of manslaughter.
The accused are Paris Wilson, 35, of Plymouth; Jude Hill, 43, of Plymouth; Abdulrasheed Adedoja, 23, of Neasden, London; Ramarnee Bakas-Sithole, 23, of London; Israel Augustus, 26, of Tottenham, London; Isanah Sungum, 22, of Edmonton, London; and Brian Kalemba, 23, of Barking, London.
Five individuals are facing charges of attempted kidnapping and attempted grievous bodily harm in relation to Mr Cahalane, with the alleged incident taking place on 19 January 2025.
The accused include Adedoja, Bakas-Sithole, Wilson, as well as Jean Mukuna, 23, and Arrone Mukuna, 25, both hailing from Camden, London.
Nine defendants are additionally charged with participation in an organised crime group involved in drug trafficking, including the enforcement of drug-related debts between 1 January 2025 and 11 April 2025.
The individuals implicated in this charge are Adedoja, Bakas-Sithole, Augustus, Wilson, Sungum, Kalemba, Jean and Arrone Mukuna, along with Jenna Said, 39, from Plymouth.
Following his passing, Mr Cahalane’s family paid tribute, stating: “Danny was an outstanding father and son.”
All ten defendants deny the charges.
The trial continues.