Ashley Dale's mum told the ECHO she felt "betrayal" after finding out the men who murdered her knew her on a "personal level."
James Witham, Sean Zeisz, Niall Barry and Joseph Peers have all been found guilty of murdering the 28-year-old council worker who was shot dead in her own home on Leinster Road in Old Swan in the early hours of August 21 last year.
They were also found guilty of conspiracy to murder Ms Dale's boyfriend Lee Harrison and conspiracy to possess a prohibited weapon, namely a Skorpion submachine gun, and ammunition with intent to endanger life. Ian Fitzgibbon was cleared of these three charges while a sixth defendant, Kallum Radford, was acquitted of assisting an offender.
READ MORE: 'Ridiculous' scenarios 'liar' Lee Harrison gave Ashley Dale's mum after her murder
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Speaking to ECHO crime reporter Jonathan Humphries, Julie said she felt a sense of "betrayal" because some of the defendants knew Ashley on a "personal level". She said: "Some of them had been with her in Glastonbury and stuff like that."
She added: "I didn't know any of the defendants personally but even down to some of Ashley's friends as well, we've heard details that some of these people chose not to give witness statements and not to speak up and that's difficult.
"And I understand people are scared and I do get that because one of your friends has just been killed in the most horrific way. To sit and hear those details and to know that these people have not spoke up up for her, it's difficult."
Julie sat through the seven week murder trial and listened to the defendants "lie" about their involvement with the shooting and claim they knew Ashley on a "friendly basis." The jury heard Zeisz claim he had "no beef" with Ashley's boyfriend and that he had been in her house drinking just weeks before the shooting.
Adam Davis, KC, who represented Zeisz said: "Mr Zeisz had beef with one person alone, and that was Dusty. No beef with Lee. No falling out with Lee. No evidence for the falling out with Lee. Leinster Road? Ashley? It’s just nonsense.
"That’s not who he had beef with. He was drinking there a couple of weeks before, no issue. It just doesn’t make sense. There’s no involvement of any gun for Sean Zeisz. no evidence."
The court also heard that Niall Barry claimed he had "always got on with Ashley." When he took the stand, Barry said: "She was a lovely girl. I would never condone going to someone’s house.
"I had always said if you have a problem, you would go to someone and deal with it in the street. I’d never take any problems to anyone's houses."
Julie Dale said: "The difficult thing is, most of the defendants, pretty much all of them, knew Ashley and have known her on a friendly basis. Never mind to do what they did, but then to get up and lie about it and talk about her.
"Hearing them mention her name just makes me so angry. You’ve done this and you’re getting up there and you’re speaking about her and then you’re covering your tracks and everything else.
"These people, not the defendants but certain people, are meant to have loved Ashley and you’ve just gone and lied and lied like her life was worth nothing, ‘just save my own back’ and that’s it."
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