Two women are set to appear in court charged with perverting the course of justice following a murder investigation which has lasted almost two years.
Kieran Wood was just 24 when he died after ‘sustaining stab wounds’ in May 2023. Cleveland Police formally identified the young man, confirming the ‘violent altercation’ as officers were called to Spurn Walk, Hartlepool, around 4.05pm on May 22.
Three people – a 66-year-old man and two women aged 36 and 55 – were arrested in connection with the incident at the time.
Keep up to date with all the latest court news from the North East with our free newsletter
However, almost two years on, the investigation into the murder has now closed, the force confirmed to Teesside Live. Two women have been charged in connection with an investigation into the death of Mr Wood, from Horden in County Durham.
Lisa Lithgo, 38, and Janette Dowson, 57, are due to appear at Teesside Magistrates’ Court on Thursday, March 20 accused of conspiracy to pervert the course of justice. “A man previously arrested in connection with the death has since passed away,” a force spokesperson added. “No charges were brought to the man before he died.”
Lithgo, of Mapleton Road in Hartlepool, and Dowson, of Grange Road in Hartlepool, are charged with ‘conspiring together’ and ‘failing to provide police with known details of a suspect knowing that an investigation into that suspect had commenced with intent to pervert the course of justice’.
View news Source: https://www.chroniclelive.co.uk/news/north-east-news/kieran-wood-hartlepool-stabbing-murder-31182487
