A controlling 'monster' who abused his fiancée before she took her own life has received more jail time, after it was revealed that his new girlfriend coached him on how to 'cry' in court. 

Ryan Wellings, 31, was jailed for six-and-a-half years in January 2025 after he was convicted of subjecting new mother Kiena Dawes, 23, to years of sickening domestic abuse and brutal violence. 

But he has now received an additional seven months in prison for contempt of court after it emerged that he had discussed the case with his mother, Lisa Green, and his new girlfriend, Emma Croft - the latter of whom offered him advice on how to show 'regret' and 'emotion'. 

His former partner Ms Dawes took her own life on July 22, 2022 and wrote in her suicide note that she was 'murdered', adding: 'Ryan Wellings killed me... He ruined every bit of strength I had left. I didn't deserve it. I didn't ask for it.' 

In a case which sparked nationwide debate, Wellings became the first defendant in England to face trial for the unlawful killing of his partner after her suicide following domestic violence. 

Wellings, a landscape gardener from Bispham, Lancashire, was convicted of assault and coercive and controlling behaviour - but cleared of manslaughter. 

Last August, however, Wellings, his mother and his new girlfriend were all arrested on suspicion of perverting the course of justice. 

The trial at Preston Crown Court heard how 29-year-old Ms Croft, from Blackpool, and 52-year-old Ms Green, from Bispham, had allegedly been 'coaching' Wellings to give evidence. 

Wellings made a series of 'calls' to the pair who had both attended the trial to support him from the public gallery.

The abuser, while being held at HMP Preston, was entitled to speak to family and friends but was not legally permitted to discuss his case with them while giving evidence.

But the prosecution said it was made aware of calls made where evidence was allegedly being discussed between them.

In one call, mother-of-two Ms Croft told Wellings: 'Some advice to listen, so take it in. Say how sorry you was and how you regret some of your action. 

'You can show emotion. If you do feel like you're gonna cry then let it out.' 

In subsequent days at the trial, Wellings cried as he gave evidence. 

Croft also advised Wellings that when asked about 'kick offs' between himself and Kiena, he should imply that some were related to her 'mental health problems'. 

Croft even added: 'Don't forget to keep mentioning self-defence. Get it in there.' 

Wellings flagrantly ignored a judge's order to not discuss his trial, since it was ongoing, with anyone. 

His mother was a potential defence witness who knew she could not discuss the trial while it was ongoing and Croft was in court for the warnings, but she nonetheless discussed the trial eight times over the phone with her son.  

Adam Birkby, prosecuting, told Preston Crown Court : 'The Crown's case is that during the telephone calls the defendants engaged in witness coaching, and that their joint intention was to influence and thereby improve both the content of the evidence given by Ryan Wellings and the manner in which he gave it. 

'This was in flagrant breach of the clear order of the court.' 

Croft and Green were given a six month sentence, suspended for 20 months. 

Sentencing, Judge Robert Altham labelled their coaching a 'serious interference with the fairness and integrity of the trial process in an important and serious case concerning the loss of life'. 

The judge was unable to conclude if it had impacted the 'ultimate outcome' of the original trial.  

In a separate case, Welling's mother and his father Michael Wellings were sentenced for kidnapping their granddaughter weeks after Ms Dawes' death. 

The baby had been in her pram with her maternal grandmother when Michael Wellings grabbed her and ran towards a car, where Green was shouting 'get her'. 

Michael Wellings and Lisa Green were both handed nine months in prison, suspended for 20 months. 

The original trial heard how Ryan Wellings repeatedly lashed out at Ms Dawes, beating her while she was pregnant with his child, as well as threatening to drown her in a bath, drill her teeth and 'make her look like Katie Piper' by dousing her with acid.

He also urged Ms Dawes to kill herself, boasted that 'hitting you is like hitting a man' and, on one occasion, forced her head underwater in a bath and said: 'Say goodbye to your baby.'

In one incident just 11 days before Ms Dawes's death, on July 11, 2022, he 'launched' her into a radiator with such force it dislodged the appliance from the wall, then slammed a door in her face - knocking her out and leaving her with blood pouring from her head.

She called police at least five times reporting domestic problems with Wellings. While she frequently downplayed her abuse to officers - due to threats from her partner - she did make a statement about the assault on July 11.

He was arrested for assault but bailed on condition he did not contact her, which he did.

The hairdresser left her nine-month-old daughter with a friend alongside a note before taking her own life on railway tracks, near Garstang, Lancashire, on July 22 2022.

The note, found on her phone, said: 'The end. I fought hard, I fought long. I went through pain no one could imagine.

'I was murdered. Ryan Wellings killed me. He ruined every bit of strength I had left. I didn't deserve it.

'I hope my life saves another by police services acting faster. Don't let bullies live free.'

Addressing her daughter, she wrote: 'I'm sorry I let you go... I'm so sorry I had to go.

'The world turned their back on me. I was strong. I had dreams. I had a future at one point. That was taken away from me.'

In a final insult to Ms Dawes and her family, unrepentant abuser Wellings blew a kiss to his new girlfriend, Emma Croft, as the verdict was read out at the trial last year. 

In February 2025, the Daily Mail revealed how Wellings had proposed to Ms Croft in a letter he left with Ms Green before the jury's verdict.

Following the trial, Ms Croft agreed to 'step down' from her job at a beauty salon in Blackpool after the owner found the controversy surrounding her alleged involvement in the case was harming business.

But she stunned friends by telling them she will 'stick by' Wellings and has accepted his 'proposal', vowing to wait for him until his release.

One friend told the Daily Mail: 'She keeps telling everyone they don't really know the real Ryan, but she's in complete denial.

'The idea that she would even consider walking down the aisle with someone like him, having heard what was said in court, is quite incredible.'

Another former friend of Ms Croft's said that she was 'completely in thrall' to Wellings and 'in denial' about the nature of his personality.

'She's got this fairytale view of him, but it's caused so much bad feeling in Blackpool,' said the friend.

'The owner of the salon where she worked has had enough of the bad publicity and threatening messages, so she asked Emma to step down and she agreed.'

In a Facebook post, The Powder Room salon announced in February: 'Please Read. In regards to recent media coverage, we would like to inform our clients that Emma Croft no longer works at The Powder Room.

'We ask that others are kind and respectful towards all staff who work hard to make our salon an inviting place and have nothing to do with the situation that has arisen.

'Police are aware of recent media comments and are staying in close contact with the owners of the salon. Thank you.'

The Daily Mail approached Wellings' mother Ms Green but she denied that her son was engaged to Ms Croft in February 2025.