Elle Edwards: Car used in shooting found burnt out, jury told

A stolen car utilized successful a shooting which killed a pistillate was burnt retired a week aboriginal by the antheral accused of her murder, a tribunal has heard.

Elle Edwards was killed by a gunman who opened occurrence with a Skorpion sub-machine extracurricular the Lighthouse pub successful Wallasey Village, Merseyside, connected 24 December.

A achromatic Mercedes A Class is alleged to person been utilized by Connor Chapman, 23, during the shooting.

Mr Chapman denies the execution of Ms Edwards, 26, astatine Liverpool Crown Court.

The assemblage was shown footage of the stolen Mercedes travelling successful a convoy with different Mercedes vehicle, some with mendacious registration plates, from Wirral to Frodsham, Cheshire, connected New Year's Eve.

Nigel Power KC, prosecuting, said compartment tract information showed the phones of Mr Chapman and co-defendant Thomas Waring appearing to determination with the cars arsenic they travelled.

The assemblage has been told Mr Chapman accepts helium was progressive successful burning retired the car but Mr Waring denies a complaint of assisting an offender and claims helium was separated from his mobile telephone astatine the time.

Footage played successful tribunal showed the car connected occurrence astatine Grassy Lane conscionable aft 22:00 GMT.

Det Con Steve Duke said the conveyance was acceptable alight successful an country adjacent the M56 motorway.

He said: "It's a precise secluded spot with precocious banks, truthful it is precise concealed."

The car was recovered by a canine walker the pursuing time and identified by its chassis number, the tribunal heard.

Home Office pathologist Christopher Johnson said Ms Edwards was deed by 3 bullets successful the shooting.

The tribunal heard determination were 2 gunshot introduction wounds to the backmost of her head, arsenic good arsenic a graze to her enarthrosis wherever a slug had gone done her coat.

Dr Johnson said 1 of the injuries to her caput was "irrecoverable".

The tribunal heard the 2 men said to beryllium the intended targets of the attack, Jake Duffy and Kieran Salkeld, were some taken to Aintree University Hospital pursuing the shooting.

A slug was recovered from Mr Salkeld's thorax and, aft country and clip successful the intensive attraction and large trauma units, helium was discharged connected 7 January, the assemblage heard.

Mr Duffy had country for wounds to his thighs and was discharged from infirmary connected 27 December.

The tribunal was told connected 30 December a booking was made for Mr Chapman to question connected a ferry from Portsmouth to Santander successful Spain connected 2 January, but it was aboriginal cancelled.

The shooting is alleged to person been the culmination of a feud betwixt a radical of radical connected the Woodchurch and Beechwood estates, connected either broadside of the M53 motorway successful Wirral.

Mr Chapman denies the execution of Ms Edwards, 2 counts of attempted execution and 3 counts of wounding with intent to origin grievous bodily harm.

He besides denies possession of a Skorpion sub-machine weapon with intent to endanger beingness and possession of ammunition with intent to endanger life.

Mr Waring, 20, of Private Drive, Barnston, Wirral, denies possessing a prohibited limb and assisting an offender by helping Chapman to dispose of the car.