NHS nurse faces 10 years in jail for ‘cleaning up crime scene after son kneecapped love rival’

Bolton Crown Court heard Vincenzo De Falco shot Jonathan Smith with a shotgun

Patricia Dean, 58, phoned in sick to her job at a Manchester hospital to tidy her car after Vincenzo De Falco shot Jonathan Smith, a court heard (PA)

A mental health nurse is facing 10 years in prison for cleaning up a crime scene after her son “kneecapped” a love rival in her car.

Bolton Crown Court heard Patricia Dean, 58, phoned in sick to her job at a Manchester hospital to tidy her car after Vincenzo De Falco shot Jonathan Smith with a shotgun, MailOnline reported.

Dean had the Mercedes sports model car undergo a full valet to wash away Mr Smith’s blood while police were searching for her 28-year-old son.

Mr Smith was found in a Rochdale street and underwent hours of surgery on his legs, the court heard.

The car, which had been hired for Dean by the NHS, was left at her sister’s house after being cleaned, but was later found by police and traces of blood were found on the seals around the passenger side compartment.

Philip Barnes, prosecuting, told the court: “Patricia Dean, for her part, arranged for the Mercedes to be thoroughly and deeply cleaned in an effort to remove all traces of Smith’s shooting.

“She sent messages to her supervisors at work, suddenly telling them that she wouldn’t be in the next day, or indeed the rest of the week, as she was suddenly and mysteriously unwell.

“We suggest that she had rather more serious things to worry about than her attendance record at work.”

The court heard that De Falco lured Mr Smith into the back of the vehicle after telling friends he wanted to “put the jitters” up someone.

After the shooting on 21 January 2019 De Falco had a number of telephone conversations with his girlfriend, who was also the ex-girlfriend of Mr Smith, the court heard.

She then phoned Dean, who arranged for the vehicle to be cleaned. The mental health nurse and her son were later arrested on 23 January.

Dean of Sowerby Bridge, West Yorkshire was found guilty of assisting an offender.

De Falco, of Bacup, Lancashire, admitted causing grievous bodily harm with intent at an earlier hearing.

The charge of assisting an offender carries a maximum jail sentence of 10 years.