Connor Chapman found guilty of murdering Elle Edwards in Wallasey
Connor Chapman has been convicted after a near four-week trial
Last updated 7th Jul 2023
A man has been found guilty of murdering Elle Edwards outside a Wallasey pub on Christmas Eve last year.
Connor Chapman, 23, opened fire with a sub-machine gun outside the Lighthouse just before midnight on 24 December 2022.
CCTV showed that he arrived in the area in a stolen black Mercedes A-class around three hours before the shooting, before then finally parking in a space with an unobstructed view of the front of the pub.
He then waited for nearly an hour in the back of the car to check that his intended targets - Jake Duffy and Kieran Salkeld - were there.
It was amid a feud between criminal gangs in the Beechwood/Ford estate.
Chapman then fired several bullets before driving off.
Chapman and his associates burnt out the car in an attempt to destroy evidence.
He then fled to Wales where he was later arrested.
Chapman - from Houghton Road in Woodchurch - denied the murder of Elle, the attempted murder of Duffy and Salkeld, wounding with intent to cause grievous bodily harm in relation to the three other men injured in the attack, and possession of a firearm and ammunition with intent to endanger life.
But he was found guilty on all counts.
He had previously admitted one count of handling stolen goods in relation to the car.
Liverpool Crown Court heard that he accepted having access to the Mercedes for around three months before the shooting, but claimed others had access to it and that it was borrowed by somebody else on the night of Elle's death.
Detective Superintendent Paul Grounds, who led the investigation, said:
"Connor Chapman has shown no remorse for his actions at all from the time of the murder and this is shown when he fled to Wales having been asked to hand himself into police, during his interviews and even during trial.
"A dangerous, despicable and ruthless individual"
"He deprived a young woman of her future and in the words of her father - just as her life was cut short, she was reaching the peak and was the happiest he had ever seen her.
"He's a dangerous, despicable and ruthless individual who is now where he should be - behind bars."
Elle's dad Tim said:
"She's a bright star. She was great, she was full of beans, very caring, she was always there for other people and she would come in a room and she would just light it up and make everyone feel at ease.
"If she would see you having a bad day, she would go out of her way to make sure that you were OK. Anything she could do to help, she would.
"I hope (Chapman) never sees another Christmas again."
Chapman will be sentenced tomorrow (7 July) at 2pm.