By Gavin Mackintosh-
A woman has appeared in court charged with the murder of a man in Essex last FebruaryKelly King, 30 from Westcliff was charged with the murder of 36 year old Courtney Valentine Brown who was killed at Roots Hall Drive on February 21 at Southend Magistrates’ Court. Mr Brown had newly been released form Chelmsford prison for 3 weeks at the time of his murder at an address at Roots Hall Drive on February 21 where he was stabbed in the leg.
Three other people, Ian Slater, 49, of Wayletts, Leigh, Stuart Pearson, 43, of Satanita Road, Westcliff and Alex Stephens, 36, of Hamlet Court Road in Westcliff, have also been charged with his murder.King had originally been arrested at an earlier stage of the investigation, but was released without charge. She was re-arrested on Wednesday following new evidence that came to light during the police investigation, and charged on the same day.
Chairman of the bench Lynett Brown deferred the case to the crown court as it was deemed too serious to be handled by magistrates. Addressing King, she said: “You are charged with one count of murder, and as we do not have jurisdiction here the case will be deferred to crown court.
“You will be remanded in custody with an expiry date of October 10.”
The killing was the second stabbing that day in an area becoming notorious for violence in recent years. The Eye Of Media.Com has obtained comprehensive details of some of the events in the days leading up to the murder from third party sources who knew the victim and some of the accuse, but cannot disclose those details at this stage for legal reasons. The case will rest squarely on murder and those responsible for it.
Courtney, know by those who knew him as ‘love’ is said to have been a softly spoken individual who was talented in design. An acquaintance of Brown said: ”prison inmates used to pay him to design their clothes when he was in jail . He was very creative in design