Oswestry man found guilty of murder of "loving and talented" Rebecca Steer

Stephen McHugh, 28, of Artillery Road in the town, has been found guilty following a two-week trial at Stafford Crown Court.

He was also found guilty of attempted grievous bodily harm of 18-year-old Kyle Roberts.

McHugh had previously admitted the manslaughter of Rebecca Steer and the assault of Mr Roberts causing actual bodily harm.

He will be sentenced at Stafford Crown Court tomorrow.

In the early hours of Sunday 9 October McHugh drove at a crowd of pedestrians outside the Grill Out takeaway on Willow Road in Oswestry. His car mounted the kerb and struck Rebecca, causing catastrophic injuries. She was taken to Royal Shrewsbury Hospital but sadly died shortly after arriving.

Senior Investigating Officer, Detective Chief Inspector Mark Bellamy, said: “This was a horrendous attack which tragically robbed an innocent young woman of her life while she was enjoying a night out with friends.

“I’m pleased that justice has been done today for Rebecca and my thoughts remain with her family. I pay tribute to the dignified way that they have conducted themselves throughout the trial, displaying venerable strength and resilience in listening to the contemptable and narcissistic behaviour of McHugh who continually lied throughout the trial in a desperate attempt to escape justice.

“I am grateful that the Jury saw through his web of lies and convicted him on the evidence presented to them by the exceptional Prosecution team of Mr Hegarty and Mr Williams.

“This was an incredibly unusual attack, particularly for a small place like Oswestry, and understandably it shook the town to the core. I’d like thank the local community for their support during this investigation, which has been invaluable in securing today’s verdict.

“I’d also like to thank my team, who worked tirelessly on this case to ensure we were able to deliver justice for Rebecca.”

Rebecca’s family have paid tribute to her and thanked those who have worked on the case, saying: “Firstly, we would like to say thank you to everyone who has worked so hard on this case to try get justice served.

“All the police, from DCI Mark Bellamy and all his incredible team to prosecution team of Mr Hegarty, Mr Williams and their team, everyone has worked tirelessly, and we will always appreciate their efforts.

“We would also like to thank everyone that has helped and supported us through this, we would like to assure you we will always be grateful.

“Listening and seeing the things we have had to during the trial has been very painful but necessary. Hopefully now we can try to start to heal.

“Rebecca Adelaide Steer, Becca to us, Becky to everyone else was a pure joy to have as a daughter/sister and we all feel lucky to have had her in our lives, but we will always feel robbed.

“So many people have said how they feel so sorry for us and that is only natural, and we are totally humbled by it, but the person people should be feeling sorry for is not us at all, it's Becca. We all get to live a life, but through no fault of her own whatsoever, her life was taken from her by a few seconds of someone else's stupidity.

“Her 13-year-old sister Kimberley summed it up perfectly in her letter to Becca at her funeral, she said: 'Becca was doing so well in life, and some stupid idiot stole her away from us'.

“Becca was and always will be 22 in our hearts, beautiful and amazing.”