MINUTES after accepting a marriage proposal at a romantic New Year's Eve celebration a 24-year-old woman died from a cocktail of drugs and also alcohol, a judge heard on Monday.
Her boyfriend Ryan Weston (below), 32, of Oteley Avenue, Bromborough, Wirral, was jailed for 21 months after pleading guilty to five charges of supplying the drugs to another - including cocaine and ecstasy - and one of burglary to cause unlawful damage.
PICTURE: North Wales Police.
The sentence will be consecutive to a 45-month term imposed in July last year for taking drugs to a Cheshire festival.
The burglary involved walking into the Wallasey home of Hollie Sheridan-Connis and leaving rats he had bought from a pet shop in her bedroom, a few weeks before her death. He'd written "Rat" on a picture board.
In November 2018 there had also been an incident when Weston, said by his lawyer to be a former close protection employee for A-listers, had lashed out in his car and broken Hollie's jaw.
Matthew Curtis, prosecuting at Caernarfon crown court, said the couple had a volatile five-year relationship, of which Hollie's family disapproved. In December 2018 it was being conducted without their knowledge.
On New Year's Eve 2018 the couple booked into a lakeside bed and breakfast establishment near Bala and Weston's marriage proposal was accepted. They phoned friends to tell them "and drank alcohol and took a cocktail of illegal drugs," said Mr Curtis.
After leaving the bedroom Weston returned to find Hollie on the bed, not breathing. He rang the fire alarm to get help but she could not be revived. Weston was arrested on suspicion of murder and became so ill he was taken to hospital.
However, no allegation was made that he had caused her death, which was found by a Home Office pathologist to have been due to multiple drug toxicity. What happened was "reckless rather than intentional," declared the barrister.
Judge Huw Rees remarked "Both were reckless."
Michael Gray, defending, said : "It's very tragic. It serves to reinforce the dangers of taking cocktails of drugs and alcohol. He's ashamed."
Judge Rees, who complimented the dignity of Hollie's family in the public seats, said the pair were regular users of drugs.
He added : "This is a tragic case and underlines the devastating effects of drugs and a combination of alcohol can have." Weston had no criminal responsibility for Hollie's death but it was an aggravating feature. It was consensual and he accepted that Weston was ashamed and contrite.
The judge described the burglary with the pet rats as "unpleasant and warped, in tune with the volatility of your relationship."
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules here