• iconNews
  • videos
  • entertainment
  • Home
  • News
    • UK News
    • US News
    • Australia
    • Ireland
    • World News
    • Weird News
    • Viral News
    • Sport
    • Technology
    • Science
    • True Crime
    • Travel
  • Entertainment
    • Celebrity
    • TV & Film
    • Netflix
    • Music
    • Gaming
    • TikTok
  • LAD Originals
    • Say Maaate to a Mate
    • Daily Ladness
    • Lad Files
    • UOKM8?
    • FreeToBe
    • Extinct
    • Citizen Reef
  • Advertise
  • Terms
  • Privacy & Cookies
  • LADbible Group
  • UNILAD
  • SPORTbible
  • GAMINGbible
  • Tyla
  • UNILAD Tech
  • FOODbible
  • License Our Content
  • About Us & Contact
  • Jobs
  • Latest
  • Topics A-Z
  • Authors
Facebook
Instagram
X
Threads
Snapchat
TikTok
YouTube

LAD Entertainment

YouTube

LAD Stories

Submit Your Content
Four men found guilty of murder of Ashley Dale who was shot dead after Glastonbury festival argument

Home> News> UK News

Updated 15:48 20 Nov 2023 GMTPublished 15:07 20 Nov 2023 GMT

breaking

Four men found guilty of murder of Ashley Dale who was shot dead after Glastonbury festival argument

Ashley Dale was shot in her home in August 2022

Jess Battison

Jess Battison

Four men have been found guilty of murdering Ashley Dale, 28, who was shot dead in Merseyside after a Glastonbury music festival argument.

James Witham, 41, Joseph Peers, 29, Niall Barry, 26, and Sean Zeisz, 28, were found guilty of the murder at Liverpool Crown Court today (20 November).

Dale was shot with a machine gun in her home in Old Swan, Liverpool, on 21 August 2022.

Witham, Peers, Barry and Zeisz were also convicted of conspiracy to murder her partner, Lee Harrison, and conspiracy to possess a prohibited weapon, a Skorpion sub-machine gun, and ammunition.

Advert

Ian Fitzgibbon, 28, who was originally accused of 'directing the hit' alongside those above, was found not guilty of the three charges.

All five men had denied the charges against them.

Witham admitted to manslaughter but denied the murder.

The tragic killing is said to have happened after a feud re-ignited when Ziesz was assaulted at Glastonbury during June.

Harrison's feud with Barry had started three years before Dale's murder.

Advert

Ashley Dale.
PA

This reportedly began when her partner sided with the Hillside organised crime group after they allegedly stole drugs from Barry.

Witham claimed he fired the shots as a 'warning' to Harrison and didn't know anyone was in the house at the time.

The prosecution say he was driven to the scene by 'foot soldier' Peers, who told the jury he was home watching boxing with his parents at the time.

Witham forced open the door of the environmental health officer's home, firing 10 bullets into her dining room and five into the wall of an upstairs bedroom.

Advert

Dale was hit by a bullet in the abdomen as she stood by the back door.

Voice recordings from the 28-year-old, sent to her friends before her death, were played during the trial.

Dale was shot by Witham.
PA

Dale said she had 'terrible anxiety' and that Barry was 'on some pure rampage'.

A sixth defendant, Kallum Radford, 26, was cleared of assisting an offender by helping to store the Hyundai used in the killing.

Advert

Dale's mum, Julie, said (as per PA): "In my eyes, there’ll never be justice for me.

“The only justice would have been that this wouldn’t have happened. At least I can rest assured now knowing that these people are going to pay for what they’ve done.”

Senior investigating officer Detective Chief Inspector Cath Cummings said: “The actions of James Witham on that day had a devastating and widespread impact.

“Ashley, an innocent women, lost her life in the most brutal way at the hands of Witham. That was compounded by the fact that she was alone in her own home, where she should have felt and been safe, when she was fatally shot."

The four men are to be sentenced at 11am on Wednesday 22 November.

Featured Image Credit: PA

Topics: UK News, Crime, Drugs

Jess Battison
Jess Battison

Jess is a Senior Journalist with a love of all things pop culture. Her main interests include asking everyone in the office what they're having for tea, waiting for a new series of The Traitors and losing her voice at a Beyoncé concert. She graduated with a first in Journalism from City, University of London in 2021.

X

@jessbattison_

Advert

Advert

Advert

Choose your content:

8 hours ago
9 hours ago
10 hours ago
12 hours ago
  • 8 hours ago

    Elon Musk urges release of Epstein files weeks after accusing Trump of being involved in fiery X rant

    Musk made a bombshell claim about his former 'first buddy'

    News
  • 9 hours ago

    Arne Slot releases emotional statement after Diogo Jota tragically dies aged 28

    The Liverpool forward and his brother died this morning

    News
  • 10 hours ago

    Mum says picture of her son at nursery saved his life after camera flash revealed rare disease

    Laura Davies, from Wales, says she would have 'never known' without the photo

    News
  • 12 hours ago

    Brit, 29, who fell ill moments after getting tattoo on hen do fighting for life in coma

    Poppy-Mae Crutchley began to feel unwell 'instantly' after she got the inking in the Spanish party hotspot

    News
  • Man found guilty of murdering 14-year-old boy he nearly decapitated with samurai sword
  • Sara Sharif's mum pays tribute to 'angelic' 10-year-old girl after father and stepmother found guilty of her murder
  • Sean 'Diddy' Combs avoids life in prison after being found not guilty on racketeering conspiracy charge
  • Moment man stares down his lawyer after being found guilty of multiple charges including murder