The father of a beautician gunned down by a man with a sub-machine gun outside a pub on Christmas Eve has said he hopes her killer “rots in hell”.
Elle Edwards, 26, was killed when Connor Chapman, 23, fired 12 shots into a group of people outside the Lighthouse pub in Wallasey Village in Wirral, shortly before midnight on December 24 last year.
She suffered two fatal bullet wounds to the back of her head, while five other men were also injured in the attack.
Elle Edwards was described as a ‘caring person’ who had no connection to the gang feud that led to her death— (PA Media)
Her father Tim Edwards said ‘We’ve got justice for Elle’ while leaving court— (Peter Byrne/PA Wire)
Chapman was convicted of her murder following a three-and-a-half week trial at Liverpool Crown Court, with her father, Tim Edwards, punching the air as he called out “we’ve got justice for Elle”.
As Chapman was led from the dock after the jury had returned its verdicts, he said to him: “You coward.”
His co-defendant Thomas Waring, 20, was found guilty of the possession of a prohibited firearm and assisting an offender, after he helped burn the stolen Mercedes that Chapman had used in the shooting.
“Those two cowards in there decided to drag it out for four weeks, put all these people through that and everyone else around it, involved in the case. I hope them two never see another Christmas again ever in their lives,” Mr Edwards said.
He added that Chapman, who has two children himself, had shown no remorse during the trial and only “regrets the fact he’s been caught”.
CCTV showed Ms Edwards greeting friends moments before she was shot twice in the head— (Merseyside Police)
“I’ve had my eyes on him for three weeks and he’s not looked at me once,” Mr Edwards told reporters. “He’s just a coward, that’s exactly what he is. I couldn’t care less about him. Our lives will never be the same.
“She was in a pub on Christmas Eve doing what any young girl should be doing: having a drink, having a good time, waiting to go and spend her Christmas with her family,” he said.
“Then some scumbag walks in and thinks he can open fire. I can’t get my head around where that thought process comes from.”
Jurors heard that the attack was a culmination of a long-standing feud between groups on the Beechwood and Woodchurch estates, which had involved burglaries, assaults and shootings.
Mr Edwards called her killer a ‘coward’ as he was led from the dock— (Peter Byrne/PA Wire)
Chapman had allegedly been targeting Kieran Salkfeld and Jake Duffy, both of whom were seriously injured in the shooting. Three other men who were unconnected to the feud also suffered injuries after Chapman sprayed bullets from the Skorpion pistol.
CCTV footage from inside the pub showed Elle greeting friends and socialising while Chapman lay in wait outside in the car park.
He was later seen firing the weapon, which is capable of firing 15 rounds a second, before speeding away in the Mercedes to the home address of co-defendant Waring at Private Drive in Barnston.
The killer, whose long hair was visible in the footage, appeared to drop the gun at one point. On December 31, the two defendants travelled to a remote area in Frodsham, Cheshire, where the vehicle was burnt out to hide evidence.
Chapman was caught when DNA evidence was linked to a bullet casing found at the scene, and was convicted of murder after three hours and 48 minutes of deliberations.
Connor Chapman had planned to target two rival gang members when he opened fire outside the Lighthouse pub— (PA)
Speaking of his daughter, Mr Edwards described her as a “caring person who would give more of her time to other people than she did to herself”. He added that he wanted her to be “remembered for that and for her warmth and her happy-go-lucky life that she was living”.
Senior investigating officer in the case, Detective Superintendent Paul Grounds, described Chapman as a ‘dangerous and ruthless individual’.
He said: ‘Connor Chapman knew exactly what he was doing when he left his home address on December 24, getting in a stolen car in possession of a Skorpion machine pistol.
‘He drove to the Lighthouse pub where he spent a number of hours there before finding a car parking space that gave him a real clear view of who was outside.
‘He then left his car with no regard for anybody else, intent on firing that gun at his intended targets, Kieran Salkeld and Jake Duffy, with not a care of what would happen to anybody else who was stood outside of the pub.’
Both Chapman and Waring are due to be sentenced at 2pm on Friday.
