Tormented Kiena Dawes kept hidden messages on her phone – disguised as a shopping list – detailing the verbal and physical abuse she suffered at the hands of Ryan Wellings.
Wellings, 30, was arrested after hairdresser Kiena, 23, took her own life after two years of domestic abuse and violence. She left their eight-month-old daughter with a friend before driving to a nearby railway line in July 2022. Hairdresser Kiena left a suicide note stating “I was murdered” and that Wellings had “killed me”.
In the separate ‘shopping list’, Kiena listed dozens of examples of Wellings insulting and humiliating her. At the top it says ‘Food – tomatoes’. But it then details all the insults Wellings threw her way. She wrote ‘You think your better than everyone’, ‘Your a dosser’, ‘You had nothing’ and ‘You had f*** all your whole life’.
Kiena Dawes’ brutal abuser raps about her death and swigs prosecco in sick video
Ryan Wellings was found not guilty of manslaughter but guilty of assault and guilty of controlling and coercive behaviour towards Kiena
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Lancashire Police)
Kiena blamed Wellings for her death in a suicide note
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Kynan Dawes / SWNS)
Other insults include ‘You do shit haircuts’, ‘You are a fat little f***’ and ‘You feel sorry for yourself everyday because you’ve had a s**t life. Get over it’. She also wrote how Wellings accused her of cheating: “I slept with his uncle whilst I was pregnant that’s why my nails fell off I was sh**** in the hot tub” and “I slept with his friend for a pair of shoes.”
And she recorded how he held a drill to her face: “Had a drill in my face turned on. Wanted to drill the teeth out of my mouth.” Another note said: “I put a picture on Instagram so he said he would throw acid all over my face and watch it burn, I’ll never be able to take selfies again.”
Kiena disguised the note as a food shopping list in her phone
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Police handout)
Kiena kept notes detailing Wellings’ actions
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Police handout)
While others said ‘I will throw you out of a window and make it look like you killed yourself’, ‘I will throw your dad’s ashes out of the window with you’. And one final note said: “If you tell the police about me they won’t believe you because your crazy I’ll tell them you’re mental.”
Wellings was found not guilty of killing Kiena after denying manslaughter, but was convicted of assault and guilty of controlling and coercive behaviour towards her. A six-week trial at Preston Crown Court heard that almost from the beginning of their relationship Wellings repeatedly subjected hairdresser Kiena to controlling and coercive behaviour, abuse and violence over a prolonged period to “grind” her down.
She had been diagnosed with an emotionally unstable personality disorder – resulting in increased impulsivity, poor self-esteem and difficulty in relationships. The court heard Wellings allegedly exploited her mental health condition, and while the condition played a part in her decision to take her own life, so too did his abusive behaviour.
Kiena Dawes took her own life after a campaign of abuse from her partner
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Lancs Live/MEN Media)
Kiena first met Wellings in January 2020 and was “swept off her feet”, the court was told. He had her name and face tattooed on his body within a week and proposed marriage within three months. But Kiena told a friend their relationship was a “fairytale that had turned into a nightmare”. She said she suffered regular violence from Wellings and threats, including using a drill on her teeth and acid to disfigure her.
On the day she died, Kiena left her baby daughter, still in her car seat, at a friend’s house. She then drove to a nearby railway line where she killed herself. She had left her mobile phone alongside the baby with her suicide note.
It read: “The end. I fought hard, I fought long. I went through pain no one could imagine. No one will know what I went threw. I was murdered. Slowly. They tortured me till there was nothing left. I lost my fight but I didn’t give up my battle. I fought till the end. Ryan Wellings killed me.”
Wellings, a landscape gardener of Bispham, Lancs, will be sentenced on Thursday.
For confidential support, call the 24-hour National Domestic Abuse Freephone Helpline on 0808 2000 247 or visit womensaid.co.uk. If you or your family have lost a friend or family member through fatal domestic abuse, AAFDA (Advocacy After Fatal Domestic Abuse) can offer specialist and expert support and advocacy. For more info visit ** www.aafda.org.uk**.
For mental health support, contact the Samaritans on 116 123, email them at jo@samaritans.org or visit samaritans.org to find your nearest branch.