Man accused of murdering girlfriend, 22, sent her WhatsApp saying 'please die' weeks beforehand

A man accused of murdering his girlfriend claims he realised how much she meant to him after another woman he was sleeping with revealed she was pregnant. Kevin Mannion, 45, denies murdering Elinor O'Brien, 22, at an apartment in Manchester city centre on August 16.

Wearing a navy suit jacket, trousers and a pair of Nike trainers as he gave evidence in Liverpool Crown Court on Monday (February 20), Mr Mannion portrayed a relationship with frequent conflict - admitting slapping Elinor and sending her a WhatsApp saying 'please die' - but insisted she 'gave as good as she got'. He told the court he had known Elinor for around four years and they became good friends, but their relationship changed around Christmas 2021 after sleeping together.

He insisted she wanted to take the relationship more seriously than he had. "We had arguments like most people do," he said. "Elinor was wanting more from the relationship than I was prepared to commit to."

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Mr Mannion denied ever treating Elinor in a way that would amount to controlling behaviour, or 'beating her up', but claimed there was 'pushing and shoving' in the relationship - while he admitted twice slapping her in the face. The first occasion was in February 2022, when Mr Mannion said she arrived at his apartment at around 2am or 3am.

"She was quite drunk, kicking and screaming the door down," he said. "I was asleep at first, I woke up. I said, you can't come round like this, it's not acceptable. She wouldn't listen, she was trying to barge past me."

The court heard Elinor was pictured with a black eye on February 22 last year, which Mr Mannion admitted he was responsible for, telling