'I was home alone' claims man accused of murdering Widnes dad (From Runcorn and Widnes World)

'I was home alone' claims man accused of murdering Widnes dad

5:01pm Tuesday 5th February 2013 in News

A MAN accused of blasting a Widnes dad to death with a shotgun said he was at home alone on the night of the murder.

Michael Eves, aged 25, denies murdering 30-year-old dad-of-three Wayne Basnett, of Mayfield Avenue.

He was shot in the head in Pepper Street, Hale Village, in what the prosecution describe as ‘a cold blooded ruthless execution’, shortly after midnight on December 22, 2010.

Giving evidence at Chester Crown Court on Friday, Eves said he was at his house in East Damwood Road, Speke, when the shooting happened.

His defence barrister, Stephen Riordan, asked him: “Do you know anything about it?”

Eves replied: “No, nothing.”

Asked if he was the person who shot Mr Basnett, Eves replied: “No, I wasn’t.”

Eves said he did not know who had shot Mr Basnett.

Mr Riordan told the jury of seven women and five men that Mr Basnett was involved in a violent struggle before he was shot.

He asked Eves: “Do you know anything about the marks on his body and neck?”

Eves replied: “No.”

Detectives traced Eves’ mobile phone calls and texts and discovered that he had refused to answer his phone or reply to texts at the time of the murder.

Eves said he wasn’t taking any calls because his girlfriend, Lizzy King, had discovered he was having an affair with Sammy Owens.

He said Miss King, the mother of his two daughters, had suspected he was being unfaithful and found out about his mistress the day before the shooting.

She confronted Miss Owens on the phone minutes before the murder.

Both women had sent him several texts and calls.

Eves told the jury: “I was blanking both of them on the phone.”

He said Miss King might have been expecting him to visit her at home but he said: “I let her down all the time.”

Detectives discovered his mobile and blackberry had not been used since 2am on December 22, hours after the murder.

Eves’ blackberry was recovered four weeks later in a Vauxhall Vectra, hired by his brother, which he used to drive.

Eves said he had a row with Miss King the day after the shooting.

He said: “She had the phones. She didn’t want me to be in contact with Sammy.

She took the sim cards out of both phones.”

Eves said he bought a new phone at Asda.

He said he only found out about the murder a few days later from Miss Owens.

He denies the attempted murder of Mr Basnett’s friend, David Garrett, wounding former Liverpool FC academy player James Ellinson and assaulting Mr Basnett’s girlfriend, Kimberley McMahon.

The trial continues.