Elle Edwards: Four people deny helping murderer Connor Chapman

Elle Edwards was an innocent bystander enjoying a festive drink when Connor Chapman opened fire

Two men and two women have denied assisting the gunman who murdered Elle Edwards outside a Wirral pub.

Ms Edwards, 26, was on a night out when she was shot outside the Lighthouse pub in Wallasey on Christmas Eve 2022.

Connor Chapman, 23, was found guilty of her murder and sentenced to a minimum of 48 years.

David Chambers 42, Danielle Dowdall, 34, Paul Owen, 54, and Roxanne Matthews, 33, entered not guilty pleas at Liverpool Crown Court.

The court heard Ms Matthews, of Noctorum, Wirral, who also uses the surname Rooney, will stand trial charged with two counts of assisting an offender.

She is accused of hiring a Volkswagen T-Cross car and booking a lodge in Wales to be used by Chapman.

Mr Chambers, of no fixed address, is charged with assisting Chapman by arranging for the hire of the Volkswagen car.

Ms Dowdall, of Woodchurch, Wirral, is alleged to have thrown out clothes worn by Chapman.

Mr Owen, also of Woodchurch, is accused of assisting Chapman by disposing of a Mercedes A-Class car used in the shooting.

A trial date was set for 2 September.

The defendants, who all deny assisting an offender, were given conditional bail ahead of a pre-trial hearing on 3 June.

Chapman fired a Skorpion submachine gun outside the pub in Wallasey Village, Wirral, shortly before midnight on 24 December 2022.

Ms Edwards, a beautician, was not the intended target.

Why not follow BBC North West on Facebook, X and Instagram? You can also send story ideas to [e-mail]