14 June 2023 , 11:23
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A man accused of murdering "innocent bystander" Elle Edwards on Christmas Eve, booked a weekend away with "the romance of Prosecco and petals" after police called him and urged him to hand himself in.
Connor Chapman who is on trial for murder is accused of shooting Elle in the head twice, and the attempted murder of two men, and the wounding with intent of two other men.
Jurors have been told police raided the home of Chapman's parents in Woodchuch on New Year's Day, eight days after the shooting outside the Lighthouse Inn pub in Wallasey Village.
Chapman, who stands accused of murdering the 26-year-old beautician in a botched assassination attempt of two rivals, was not at the address.
However, his grandad, Dave McLellan, phoned him and he was urged by a sergeant to give himself up.
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Prosecutor Nigel Power said: "He didn’t, and he never used that phone again."
Connor Chapman is accused of murder (Liverpool Echo)Chapman, 23, denies killing Ms Edwards, and told Liverpool Crown Court he was at home watching YouTube videos at the time of the shooting.
Mr Power added that, following the police raid, Chapman cancelled his plans to travel to Santander in Northern Spain on January 2.
On January 3 he contacted his friend, Thomas Waring, who stands accused of assisting Chapman by disposing of the Mercedes A Class car used in the fatal drive-by shooting.
Mr Power said: “On January 9, a woman [who cannot be named for legal reasons] booked Penllwyn Lodges - a holiday home in mid Wales.
"She provided a Connor Chapman number. It was for four nights from the ninth of January. The romance of Prosecco and petals.”
Elle Edwards' family was in court to hear the evidence (Andy Stenning/Daily Mirror)The same woman was driven to Liverpool John Lennon Airport and hired Chapman a Volkswagen T-Cross car, the court was told.
Chapman was then seen at a McDonald’s drive-thru in Welshpool.
On January 10, he complained to the woman “did you give them my number? Cheeky c***s didn’t get my petals and prosecco on ice haha”.
He was arrested that afternoon, along with his girlfriend, at a Tesco supermarket in Newtown.
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Images of the accommodation where Chapman had been booked to stay were shown to the jury, with a “lamentable lack of rose petals”.
Chapman denies murder. The trial continues.