Yorkshire mother jailed for lying to police to help her killer son evade arrest

Kelly Ward was jailed for 12 months on Friday (Jan 21) for helping her killer son, Bradley Ward, go on the run for six days while detectives were investigating the murder of Sheffield man Ricky Collins last year.

Bradley Ward, 24, from Frecheville, Sheffield, stabbed 31-year-old Ricky during an altercation in Killamarsh, Derbyshire, last March.

He received a life sentence earlier this week and was ordered to serve a minimum of 23 years behind bars.

Bradley’s dad, David Ward, 44, from Sheffield and relative Martin Mongan, 45, from Pontefract, were each jailed for two years at the same hearing after pleading guilty to assisting an offender.

Bradley’s mum, Kelly Ward, 42, from Sheffield, also admitted assisting an offender, and was jailed on Friday.

Kelly and David picked up their killer son from the Killamarsh area on the night of the murder and took him to Mongan’s house to hide.

The parents later lied to the police about his whereabouts.

They told police officers they had not seen him.

Once their involvement in helping Bradley evade arrest became known, Kelly, claimed to have only believed that her son had been involved in a fight. She denied knowing that he had killed another man

But Judge Robert Egbuna, sentencing her at Derby Crown Court, said Kelly played an “integral part” in helping her son evade arrest.

He said she had told “deliberate lies” when questioned by the police.