Alice Wood who dragged partner under car in Rode Heath guilty

A woman who dragged her fiancé under her car after a row at a party has been convicted of murder.

Alice Wood, 23, had denied killing Ryan Watson, 24, near the home they shared in Rode Heath, Cheshire, on 6 May 2022.

But after a trial at Chester Crown Court, the jury found Wood guilty.

She hit Mr Watson with her Ford Fiesta, before dragging him for 158 metres underneath it, after he had “clicked” with another woman at the party to celebrate a 60th birthday.

Wood had denied murder and an alternative count of manslaughter as she claimed Mr Watson’s death had been a “tragic accident”.

The philosophy student had told her trial she did not realise he was trapped underneath her car when she drove up Sandbach Road, before stopping.

Just before Mr Watson’s death, Wood had accused him of flirting with another woman at the party, held in Hanley to celebrate the birthday of a service user of the charity he worked for.

There had also been tension between the pair as they argued over who was driving home, the prosecution had told the court.

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