Boyfriend of Shooting Victim Pleads Guilty to Drug Conspiracy

The individual identified as the boyfriend of a woman fatally shot in Merseyside has entered a guilty plea to charges of conspiracy to supply Class A drugs. Ashley Dale, aged 28, died in August 2022 after a gunman forcibly entered her residence in Old Swan, Liverpool. This incident occurred amidst an ongoing dispute between her assailants and her boyfriend, Lee Harrison. During his appearance at Liverpool Crown Court, Harrison confessed to conspiracy to supply heroin and crack cocaine, in addition to admitting possession of cocaine with intent to supply. Judge Brian Cummings has postponed the proceedings until 21 February for sentencing. Harrison’s arrest took place on 25 November, following a vehicle stop by law enforcement officers on Jennifer Avenue in the city. Testimony presented in court indicated that the 27-year-old, along with his co-defendant Terence Rice, 36, faced accusations of conspiring with each other and “other persons unknown” to distribute Class A drugs during the period from 1 October to 26 November. During a trial held last year, it was revealed that Harrison, residing on Liverpool Road, Huyton, had been “totally uncooperative” with police authorities subsequent to his partner’s murder. Ms. Dale, who was employed as an environmental health worker for Knowsley Council, was shot by James Witham, 42, who used a Skorpion submachine gun to open fire inside her residence. He discharged 10 rounds in her dining room, with one bullet striking Ms. Dale in the abdomen as she stood near the back door, and five rounds impacting the wall of an upstairs bedroom. Subsequently, Witham and his co-defendants, Joseph Peers, 29, Niall Barry, 26, and Sean Zeisz, 28, were found guilty of her murder. Testimony during the trial indicated that Harrison was the intended victim of the shooting, stemming from a dispute with Barry that had resurfaced at the Glastonbury festival in June 2022. Rice, Harrison’s co-accused, residing on Bearwood Road, Kirkby, also entered a guilty plea to conspiracy to supply crack cocaine and heroin and is scheduled for sentencing on the identical date.