A young mum who suffered vile torture and abuse at the hands of her fiancé sobbed uncontrollably to police about him before taking her own life.
Distressing bodycam footage released by Lancashire Police showed a heavily pregnant Kiena Dawes, 23, sitting on the foot of a bed and crying as she told cops she was struggling to get rid of her fiancé Ryan Wellings – who was later convicted of assaulting her. Dressed in nothing but a towel with items strewn across the bedroom floor, Kiena told officers that Wellings threatened to tell social services about her mental health condition, leaving her terrified that her unborn child would be taken away at birth.
The clip, recorded in April 2021 – a year before Kiena’s tragic death and while she was 7 months pregnant – shows the officer trying to calm the young mum-to-be down, reminding her the police are there to help. Asked if there is anyone they can call for her, Kiena quickly explains she has no-one she can call.
Through heavy breaths she told the officer: “I’m trying to get rid of him, but he tries to take everything, he has taken all of my shoes, my jewellery, literally everything, he has people who come. He knows my dad is dead and can’t help me. I’ve got no-one who can help me, but he has a lot of people who can help him.”
Wellings faced charges of manslaughter, assault and controlling and coercive behaviour towards Kiena during a trial at Preston Crown Court, which heard he carried out a prolonged campaign of abuse before she was found dead on a railway track near Garstang, in Lancashire, in July 2022. The 30-year-old was found guilty of assault and controlling and coercive behaviour, but not guilty of manslaughter.
In the tragic clip released after Wellings was convicted, the officer is heard asking why Kiena can’t talk to her mum, to which she replies: “Because she’s sick of it.” The officer hears that this is the third call to the police, and Kiena says: “This is so bad, he says that because I have a mental health condition, you’ll take the baby off me. He’ll make you think I’m crazy. I’ve got a personality disorder. It has nothing to do with all of this.” The policewoman assures her: “Listen, there are plenty of people with mental health issues that have children.”
Keina adds: “I know but he just says if I ring anyone to help, they’ll just take my kid, and he’ll get all of his family to just say I’m crazy. It’s so bad. I just need it to stop.”
The hairdresser, from Fleetwood, vanished earlier in the day on July 22, 2022, after dropping the couple’s nine-month-old daughter at a friend’s house. She also left behind a suicide note on her mobile phone which said she’d been “murdered” by Wellings. She suffered multiple injuries when she was struck by a Glasgow-bound train travelling at 110mph.
The jury heard about a suicide note Kiena left on her phone, which read: “The end. I fought hard, I fought long. went through pain no one could imagine. No one will know what I went through.
“I was murdered. Slowly. They tortured me, till there was nothing left. I lost my fight but I didn’t give up my battle. I fought till the end. Ryan Wellings killed me.” The note also said, “I hope my life saves another by police services acting faster” and that she wanted her daughter “kept away from the monster who is called her dad”.
For mental health support, contact the Samaritans on 116 123, email them at jo@samaritans.org or visit samaritans.org to find your nearest branch.
For confidential support, call the 24-hour National Domestic Abuse Freephone Helpline on 0808 2000 247 or visit womensaid.co.uk. If you or your family have lost a friend or family member through fatal domestic abuse, AAFDA (Advocacy After Fatal Domestic Abuse) can offer specialist and expert support and advocacy. For more info visit www.aafda.org.uk
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