Jury Begins Deliberations in Trial of Four Charged with Assisting Elle Edwards’ Murderer

The jury in the case involving four individuals charged with aiding the assailant responsible for Elle Edwards’ murder has commenced deliberations on its verdicts. Ms. Edwards, aged 26, lost her life on Christmas Eve in 2022 when Connor Chapman discharged a sub-machine gun outside a pub in Merseyside. David Chambers, identified as Chapman’s uncle, along with Danielle Dowdall, Roxanne Matthews, and Paul Owen, face charges of assisting an offender. Following a four-week trial held at Liverpool Crown Court, the jurors have withdrawn to deliberate. Ms. Dowdall, 34, from Woodchurch in Wirral, is accused of receiving a bag containing Chapman’s clothes subsequent to the shooting. Nevertheless, she informed the court that he had provided her with the bag, which held clothes and Pandora jewellery, prior to Christmas Eve. Mr. Chambers stands accused of retrieving the clothing from his nephew’s residence on Christmas Day and transporting them to Ms. Dowdall. Additionally, he is charged with accompanying co-defendant Ms. Matthews, 34, to pick up a hire car for Chapman on January 9, 2023. Ms. Matthews faces accusations of sheltering Chapman at her Noctorum, Wirral, home, reserving a holiday lodge for him in North Wales, and coordinating the hire car for him with Ms. Dowdall. She testified in court that she thought he had been expelled from his girlfriend’s home after impregnating another woman and sought to book a holiday to reconcile. During the trial, it was alleged that Paul Owen, 55, lent his vehicle to Chapman on New Year’s Eve, a day when the perpetrator traveled in convoy to Frodsham, Cheshire, to incinerate a black Mercedes he had utilized on the day of the shooting. In his testimony, Mr. Owen stated that the drug dealer had informed him he would drive his car home, as it required relocation due to a scheduled fireworks display. Ms. Dowdall and Mr. Owen each deny a single count of assisting an offender. Mr. Chambers denies two counts, and Ms. Matthews denies three charges. Chapman received a life sentence with a minimum term of 48 years following a trial in July 2023, for the murder of Ms. Edwards and the attempted murder of two rival gang members. Additional reporting was provided by the Press Association. The best of BBC Radio Merseyside is available on Sounds, and BBC Merseyside can be followed on Facebook, X, and Instagram. Story ideas may also be submitted to northwest.newsonline@bbc.co.uk. Copyright 2024 BBC. All rights reserved. The BBC disclaims responsibility for the content of external sites. Information regarding our approach to external linking is accessible.