Five key missed chances to save Kiena Dawes from violent bully boyfriend
In her heartbreaking suicide note, Kiena Dawes said she hoped the police would act ‘faster’ in cases like hers and someone else’s life would be saved in the future.
She endured two years of domestic abuse at the hands of Ryan Wellings, 30, who beat her while she was pregnant, threatened to drown her in a bath, drill her teeth and ‘make her look like Katie Piper’ by pouring acid over her face.
The 23-year-old called the police at least five times in the 12 months before she killed herself, in July 2022.
But despite her visible injuries – including a black eye while heavily pregnant – when police visited her at home, they took her word for it when she downplayed the abuse and declined to pursue the complaint any further due to her fear of Wellings, who would threaten that she would have the baby taken off her if she told them what really happened.
She finally found the courage to make a statement after a final beating on July 11, 2022, that ‘broke’ her and left her unconscious and needing hospital treatment.
Wellings was arrested on suspicion of assault and bailed on the condition he did not contact Kiena.
But six days later, at 2.51am on July 17, she got a missed call from Wellings’ ex-girlfriend, Kayleigh Anderson’s number.
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When she rang back he was on the other end, threatening her like he always did.
She reported this to police as a breach of bail and sent screenshots of abusive texts from Wellings, saying, ‘Why the f*** did you tell the police?’
While bravely giving another statement to an officer and saying she rang Anderson’s number back following a missed call, the statement was abruptly stopped and the officer concluded there had been no breach of bail.
Kiena was also told by police to take down a Facebook post, not naming Wellings, but detailing the domestic violence she alleged she had suffered.
This all left her feeling, ‘unsupported’ by police and upset that Wellings had not been ‘locked up’.
Days later she wrote her suicide note before taking her life on a railway line, saying: ‘I hope my life saves another by police services acting faster.
‘Don’t let bullies live free.
‘Make sure the person who is tortured is heard. Let them have a voice. I lost my voice to them.’
Timeline of abuse suffered by Kiena Dawes: ‘Fairy tale turned to nightmare’
Kiena Dawes said her relationship with Ryan Wellings turned from ‘fairy tale to nightmare’.
Here is a timeline of the two years of abuse she suffered:
– January 26, 2020 – Kiena is introduced to father-of-two Wellings by her brother and an ‘intense’ relationship begins. He has tattoos of her face and name within a week of meeting.
– February 25, 2020 – the first hint of trouble, Kiena sends him a message, saying: ‘Stop hurting me now xxxx.’
– April 3, 2020 – Wellings proposes. She agrees.
– May 3, 2020 – Wellings, in drink, becomes jealous and angry and attempts to strangle Kiena with an iPhone charger cable, leaving her bruised and badly shaken up.
– May 29, 2020 – Wellings accuses Kiena of cheating and throws a stool at her, screaming she is a ‘slag’ and telling her to kill herself. He throws Ms Dawes to the ground and she cuts her foot on broken glass. He later apologises.
– July 20 2020 – Kiena’s father, Russell Dawes, who she is very close to, dies suddenly.
– August 28, 2020 – Ms Dawes sends text messages to Wellings saying: “You’ve f****** terrorised me… You’re a bully.”
– Christmas 2020 – Kiena tells Wellings she is leaving him. She is ‘ragged around’ by her hair and he demands money from her. Her mother tells Kiena to call police but she makes up with Wellings the next day.
– February 2021 – Kiena becomes pregnant. Wellings begins calling her ‘fat’ and starts talking to prostitutes and escorts online. She has to stop taking medication and her mental health condition deteriorates.
– February 20, 2021 – Kiena is admitted to a mental hospital for three weeks feeling suicidal. Wellings tells her no one believes her complaints about him due to her mental issues and her unborn child would be taken from her.
– April 17, 2021 – Kiena kicks Wellings out of her flat because he was cheating. Wellings threatens to torch her car, updates his Facebook profile to show him sitting in a car, smiling and holding a lighter.
– May 8, 2021 – Wellings smashes up the home-made shrine of candles and a photo Kiena had made of her late father. He threatens to flush her father’s ashes down the toilet.
– July 5, 2021 – Kiena, six months pregnant, is given a black eye by Wellings. She rang the police but before they arrive he tells her they will take their unborn child off them. When officers arrive she tells them it was just a verbal argument. Wellings apologises and promises not to do it again.
– August 2, 2021 – Kiena sends a WhatsApp to Wellings of some of the things he has said to her: ‘You think your life is hell now, when the baby gets here I’ll make it f****** hell… You’re a fat little bitch. Your (family) are dossers. You’ve got a shit life. No one loves you. Stop f****** crying.’
– August 4, 2021 – Kiena calls police for a second time, saying the couple had split but Wellings was trying to take her property from their flat. She tells officers Wellings had assaulted her in the past.
– September 23, 2021 – Kiena sends Wellings a message, ‘You’ve raised your fist to me twice this week… You’ll never change.’
– October 13, 2021 – Ms Dawes gives birth to their daughter.
– November 21, 2021 – Kiena’s mother Angela calls 999 saying Wellings was refusing to leave their flat, with Ms Dawes complaining he was ‘terrorising’ her.
– Christmas 2021 – During a row Wellings turns his cordless drill on and puts it to Ms Dawes’s face, threatening to drill her teeth out.
– January 4, 2022 – Kiena calls the National Domestic Abuse Helpline reporting abuse and violence from Wellings.
– March 11, 2022 – Kiena is bathing their daughter and Wellings grabs her head and dunks it in the baby bath, threatening to drown her.
– March 15, 2022 – Kiena makes her first witness statement to police after calling 999, reporting domestic violence. Wellings is arrested on suspicion of assault. However she tells police she does not want to pursue a complaint and takes him back again.
– Police arrange for a panic alarm to be installed in Ms Dawes’s flat.
– June 13, 2022 – Wellings pushes Ms Dawes over the back of their sofa, grabs and hits her after she answered Wellings back, which ‘triggers his anger’.
– July 4, 2022 – Kiena drives into the back of a car, telling paramedics, she forgot she was on the road and was thinking about taking her own life and that she needs help.
– July 11, 2022 – Covered in blood, Kiena calls 999 reporting Wellings had ‘launched’ her into a bathroom radiator knocking it from a wall and slammed a door in her face, knocking her out and cutting her head. She is treated in hospital for her injuries. Wellings is arrested and bailed not to contact Ms Dawes.
– July 17, 2022 – Wellings calls Kiena in the early hours of the morning with threats. She reports this to police but it is not treated as a breach of bail, leaving her feeling ‘unsupported’.
– July 22, 2022 – Kiena is killed on a railway line. She had left her daughter with a friend along with a suicide note saying, ‘Ryan Wellings killed me’.
Campaigners and experts have called for recognition of the ‘undeniable’ links between domestic abuse and suicide.
More domestic abuse victims are killing themselves than those killed by an intimate partner.
But these deaths are not being counted, meaning there is little sense of the real scale of the problem.
‘Domestic abuse is leading to more suicides than homicides, a fact supported by police, but the former are usually not being investigated anywhere near adequately and properly,’ said Frank Mullane, CEO of charity Advocacy After Fatal Domestic Abuse (AAFDA).
‘When the worst happens, everything hinges on the police investigation after suicide.
‘Police should treat all suicides, where there was known domestic abuse, as potential homicides.’
Julia Dwyer, Head of Services at Refuge, said: ‘Refuge is devastated by the death of Kiena Dawes in 2022.
‘Kiena faced horrific abuse and violence perpetrated by Ryan Wellings, found not guilty of manslaughter but convicted of assault and coercive and controlling behaviour.
‘In light of the convictions, we remain steadfast in our position that there is an undeniable link between domestic abuse and suicide.
‘The trauma that can develop as a result of domestic abuse cannot be underestimated.
‘A Refuge study, in collaboration with the University of Warwick, found that 83% of people who used Refuge’s services reported feelings of despair or hopelessness – a key determinant for suicidality. At least 24% said they had felt suicidal at one time or another, with 18% sharing that they had made plans to end their life. And yet, despite the severe impact that domestic abuse can have on the mental wellbeing of those who experience it, deaths by suicide are not formally recognised as domestic abuse-related deaths.
How to seek help if you feel you are being driven to self-harm as a result of domestic abuse
Mr Mullane said: ‘Victims of domestic abuse who survived suicide attempts or who escaped the abuse before they got to that stage talk about the entrapment caused by coercive control.
‘They could not see a way out. Their lives and choices had been so controlled, that the escape seemed impossible to them.
‘But I urge victims to always seek help. There are pathways to safety and a better life.’
If the worst happens, contact AAFDA for free support and specialist advocacy, via email at [email protected] or call 07887 488 464
Samaritans are available on 116 123 or at www.samaritans.org/how-we-can-help/contact-samaritan/
You can contact Women’s Aid via email at [email protected]
Local support can be found by using their Domestic Abuse Directory
Other useful links:
National Domestic Abuse Helpline – 0808 2000 247 (free phone run by Refuge)
The Men’s Advice Line, for male domestic abuse survivors – 0808 801 0327 (run by Respect)
The Mix, free information and support for under 25s in the UK – 0808 808 4994
National LGBT+ Domestic Abuse Helpline – 0800 999 5428 (run by Galop)
Live Free from Fear Helpline – 0808 8010 800 (run by Welsh Women’s Aid this helpline supports men and women and provides support in English and Welsh)
Rights of Women advice lines, there are a range of services available
‘On average, one woman in England and Wales is killed by partner or ex-partner every five days, and an estimated three women die by suicide each week due to being subjected domestic abuse.
‘While these figures alone are truly harrowing, we expect these to represent the tip of the iceberg as deaths caused by domestic abuse continue to be severely under-reported.
‘Refuge stands in solidarity with Kiena’s family, and everyone who has been affected by domestic abuse.
‘Improved recognition of how domestic abuse can directly cause trauma and suicide is paramount in ensuring as many victims and survivors as possible are able to get justice, and we will continue to campaign for a world where no more lives are taken by the crime that is domestic abuse.’
A spokesman for the Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC) said: ‘Our investigation into the contact between Lancashire Constabulary and Kiena Dawes, before her death is complete.
‘We examined the police response to Ms Dawes being reported missing, as well as the police response to earlier reports that she had been the victim of assaults.
‘Following the conclusion of our investigation in July 2023, we found one officer had a case to answer for gross misconduct and two officers had a case to answer for misconduct relating to actions or omissions connected to Ms Dawes’s reports of domestic abuse.
‘We found no case to answer for a fourth officer who was under investigation for potential misconduct.
‘It is for Lancashire Constabulary to arrange police disciplinary hearings which will determine the outcome.
‘Our thoughts remain with Ms Dawes’ loved ones and all those affected by her death.’
The disciplinary hearings for the three officers involved will now go ahead after the conclusion of Wellings’ trial, following which he was cleared of manslaughter but convicted of assault and coercive and controlling behaviour.
Get in touch with our news team by emailing us at [email protected].
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