Kiena Dawes said her relationship with Ryan Wellings turned from “fairy tale to nightmare”.
The 30-year-old was today (January 13) found guilty of assault and prolonged domestic violence towards his partner, but cleared of her manslaughter. Kiena, 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.
Wellings had 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. 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.
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. 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, 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.
Ryan Wellings
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. 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.
After she became pregnant, Wellings gave her a black eye and began criticising her weight, calling her a “fat little bitch” while contacting escorts and prostitute online. Friends and her mother, Angela Dawes, warned Ms Dawes to “run a mile” from “toxic” Wellings, but a pattern developed of break-up and make-up, he excusing his behaviour saying “It was only a slap” and apologising profusely.
After threatening her with his drill, Ms Dawes again broke up with Wellings, with him texting back: “Can we have sex with each other still? We just be sex buddies?” More than once police were called, but Wellings threatened Ms Dawes that she would have their daughter taken off them if she told them what was happening, so she declined to help prosecute him.
Jurors heard Kiena Dawes had suffered two years of violence and abuse at the hands of Wellings
Paul Greaney KC, prosecuting, read Ms Dawes’ suicide note 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 told jurors “I’m not a monster”, claiming her allegations were either untrue or exaggerated and any injuries to her accidental. He did however admit getting “heavy handed” with her.
A final battering “broke” Ms Dawes, Wellings leaving her needing hospital treatment. This time she did make a statement to police and her tormentor was arrested. He then broke his bail conditions but was not locked up, leaving Ms Dawes feeling let down by police.
Four days later she killed herself. Three Lancashire Police officers face disciplinary hearings.
The defendant claimed Ms Dawes’ accusations against him were either untrue or exaggerated, and any injuries she suffered before her death were a result of his attempts to restrain her or accidental. Ms Dawes had been described as a “very troubled young lady” who decided to end her life not because of Wellings, but because of “multiple factors”.
She had also made a number of suicide attempts in the past, before she met Wellings. Sentencing of the defendant is yet to be arranged.
Here is a timeline of the two years of abuse she suffered:
- January 26 2020 – Ms Dawes is introduced to father-of-two Wellings by her brother and an “intense” relationship begins. He has tattoos of her face and name within a week of meeting.
- February 25 2020 – the first hint of trouble, Ms Dawes sends him a message, saying: “Stop hurting me now xxxx.”
- April 3 2020 – Wellings proposes marriage to Ms Dawes. She agrees.
- May 3 2020 – Wellings, in drink, becomes jealous and angry and attempts to strangle Ms Dawes with an iPhone charger cable, leaving her bruised and badly shaken up.
- May 29 2020 – Wellings accuses Ms Dawes of being unfaithful and throws a stool at her, screaming she is a “slag” and telling her to kill herself. He throws Ms Dawes to the ground and she cuts her foot on broken glass. He later apologises.
- July 20 2020 – Ms Dawes’s father, Russell Dawes, who she is very close to, dies suddenly.
- August 28 2020 – Ms Dawes sends text messages to Wellings saying: “You’ve f****** terrorised me… You’re a bully.”
- Christmas 2020 – Ms Dawes tells Wellings she is leaving him. She is “ragged around” by her hair and he demands money from her. Her mother tells Ms Dawes to call police but she makes up with Wellings the next day.
- February 2021 – Ms Dawes becomes pregnant. Wellings begins calling her “fat” and starts talking to prostitutes and escorts online. She has to stop taking medication and her mental health condition deteriorates.
- February 20 2021 – Ms Dawes is admitted to a mental hospital for three weeks feeling suicidal. Wellings tells her no one believes her complaints about him due to her mental issues and her unborn child would be taken from her.
- April 17 2021 – Ms Dawes kicks Wellings out of her flat because he was cheating. Wellings threatens to torch her car, updates his Facebook profile to show him sitting in a car, smiling and holding a lighter.
- May 8 2021 – Wellings smashes up the home-made shrine of candles and a photo Ms Dawes had made of her late father. He threatens to flush her father’s ashes down the toilet.
- July 5 2021 – Ms Dawes, six months pregnant, is given a black eye by Wellings. She rang the police but before they arrive he tells her they will take their unborn child off them. When officers arrive she tells them it was just a verbal argument. Wellings apologises and promises not to do it again.
- August 2 2021 – Ms Dawes sends a WhatsApp to Wellings of some of the things he has said to her: “You think your life is hell now, when the baby gets here I’ll make it f****** hell… You’re a fat little bitch. Your (family) are dossers. You’ve got a shit life. No one loves you. Stop f****** crying.”
- August 4 2021 – Ms Dawes calls police for a second time, saying the couple had split but Wellings was trying to take her property from their flat. She tells officers Wellings had assaulted her in the past.
- September 23 2021 – Ms Dawes sends Wellings a message, “You’ve raised your fist to me twice this week… You’ll never change.”
- October 13 2021 – Ms Dawes gives birth to their daughter.
- November 21 2021 – Ms Dawes’s mother Angela calls 999 saying Wellings was refusing to leave their flat, with Ms Dawes complaining he was “terrorising” her.
- Christmas 2021 – During a row Wellings turns his cordless drill on and puts it to Ms Dawes’s face, threatening to drill her teeth out.
- January 4 2022 – Ms Dawes calls the National Domestic Abuse Helpline reporting abuse and violence from Wellings.
- March 11 2022 – Ms Dawes is bathing their daughter and Wellings grabs her head and dunks it in the baby bath, threatening to drown her.
- March 15 2022 – Ms Dawes makes her first witness statement to police after calling 999, reporting domestic violence. Wellings is arrested on suspicion of assault. However she tells police she does not want to pursue a complaint and takes him back again. Police arrange for a panic alarm to be installed in Ms Dawes’s flat.
- June 13 2022 – Wellings pushes Ms Dawes over the back of their sofa, grabs and hits her after she answered Wellings back, which “triggers his anger”.
- July 4 2022 – Ms Dawes drives into the back of a car, telling paramedics, she forgot she was on the road and was thinking about taking her own life and that she needs help.
- July 11 2022 – Covered in blood, Ms Dawes calls 999 reporting Wellings had “launched” her into a bathroom radiator knocking it from a wall and slammed a door in her face, knocking her out and cutting her head. She is treated in hospital for her injuries. Wellings is arrested and bailed not to contact Ms Dawes.
- July 17 2022 – Wellings calls Ms Dawes in the early hours of the morning with threats. She reports this to police but it is not treated as a breach of bail, leaving her feeling “unsupported”.
- July 22 2022 – Ms Dawes is killed on a railway line. She had left her daughter with a friend along with a suicide note saying, “Ryan Wellings killed me”.
You don’t have to suffer in silence if you’re struggling with your mental health.
Here are some groups you can contact:
Samaritans: Phone 116 123, 24 hours a day, or email jo@samaritans.org, in confidence.
Childline: Phone 0800 1111. Calls are free and won’t show up on your bill.
PAPYRUS: Suicide prevention charity offering professional help and support to children, young people and anyone concerned for someone struggling with life. Call HOPELINEUK on 0800 068 4141, text 07860 039 967 or email pat@papyrus-uk.org.
Depression Alliance: A charity for people with depression. No helpline, but it offers useful resources and links to other information.
Students Against Depression: A website for students who are depressed, have low mood, or are suicidal. Click here to visit.
Bullying UK: A website for both children and adults affected by bullying. Click here.
Campaign Against Living Miserably (CALM): For young men who are feeling unhappy. There is a helpline: 0800 58 58 58 or visit the website.
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