Murder trial date set after Rosie Darbyshire's body was discovered in Ribbleton

The date for a murder trial has been set after the body of a mum-of-one was found in a street in Ribbleton.
Benjamin Topping, 25, of St Georges Road, PrestonBenjamin Topping, 25, of St Georges Road, Preston
Benjamin Topping, 25, of St Georges Road, Preston

Benjamin Topping, 25, of St George’s Road, Preston was charged with the murder of Rosie Darbyshire at a hearing at Preston Crown Court on Saturday.

Ms Darbyshire, 27, from Ribbleton, Preston had been discovered in Pope Lane, Ribbleton, close to the junction with Village Drive, in the early hours of Thursday morning.

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A post mortem examination revealed she had died as a result of serious head injuries.

Today, at a pretrial hearing at Crown Court, defense solicitor Sephton Lee and prosecuting Joe Allman discussed dates with the judge for Topping’s plea hearing and trial.

A plea and case management hearing (PCMH) is now due to take place on Friday, April 12 in the morning.

The trial is set to begin on Monday, June 3 and is estimated to continue for between five and seven days.

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Members of Ms Darbyshire’s family appeared in the public gallery in tears during the hearing.

Topping did not appear via a video link from HMP Preston where he is in custody as initially planned because of problems with timings.