Pat McCormick: Woman pleads guilty to manslaughter

Father-of-four Pat McCormick went missing on 30 May 2019

A woman has pleaded guilty to the manslaughter of a father-of-four whose body was found in a lake in County Down.

Lesley Ann Dodds, 24, of Mount Vernon Road, Belfast, had been due to go on trial for the murder of William Thompson McCormick, also known as Pat.

Prosecuting KC David McDowell amended the indictment to include the lesser offence of manslaughter.

Mr McCormick was last seen alive in Comber on 30 May 2019.

The 55-year-old's body was found in a lake in the Ballygowan area six weeks later.

Lesley-Ann Dodds, pictured at a previous hearing in a prison van

At the same hearing in Craigavon Crown Court on Tuesday, 23-year-old Andrew Leslie of Mourne Crescent in Moneyrea admitted withholding information.

Both defendants had been due to go on trial this week.

The court heard that pre-sentence reports will now be prepared, with the sentencing process set to take place early in the new year.

Earlier this year David Gill, 29, pleaded guilty to Mr McCormick's murder.

At the time, two other men - Gill's older brother William, 42, and 23-year-old Jonathan Montgomery admitted withholding information.