Trial is told of call after Bilston club killing
A man accused of murder told the mother of his three children not to go into work the day after a nightclub reveller was fatally shot, and drove her to stay at his wife's house before leaving the country, a court heard.
Speaking from behind a screen at Birmingham Crown Court, Janet Johnson, mother to three children by Vincent Tony Ashman, told the jury of his actions on the day after he is alleged to have shot Danny McCalla at the Tropical Harmony venue in Bilston in November 2009.
Miss Johnson said she received a phone call from Ashman the day after Danny "Dannyman" McCalla was shot saying she should not go to work.
She ignored his advice and went to work, where she heard rumours of a shooting at Tropical Harmony.
Miss Rachel Brand QC, prosecuting, said that after asking Miss Johnson to pack an overnight bag, he arranged to take her to his wife Lisa's house. The court heard that Ashman then returned to Jamaica, where he originally met Miss Johnson, and from where he was extradited in July.
Miss Brand earlier said a Seat Leon car was found near Tropical Harmony. Coopers Salvage Yard in Quarry Bank, Dudley, had sold it to a man known to its boss as Curtis – another name used by Ashman – who was with a woman.
Sales records show it was delivered to 38-year-old Ashman's former home address in Worcester Road, Dudley.
Ashman's DNA, meanwhile, matched blood found on the pavement between the front door of the club and the car. Ashman denies murdering Mr McCalla, from Dudley, on November 21, 2009 and possessing a firearm with intent to cause fear of violence in July 2008.
The trial continues.
By Alex Homer
