UPDATE: |Hit and run victim named as man arrested on suspicion of murder News

A 41-year-old man has been charged with murder

A man who died in a hit and run that took place after a party has been named. Emergency services were called to Stonyhurst Road in Woolton following reports of a man being hit by a car on Good Friday (March 18).

Paramedics also arrived at the scene where they found a group of people helping 46-year-old Martin O’Donovan before he was taken to hospital where he died from his injuries.

A tribute issued by his family said: “Martin was a loving, caring, fun, and intelligent son, brother and uncle, who would light up any room with his humour and presence.

“He lived life by his motto ‘keep smiling’ and was highly devoted to his family and friends.

“An accomplished engineer and skilled outdoorsman, he was well-read, well-travelled, and full of light, and his wonderfully joyous spirit will live on in everyone who had the pleasure of meeting him.

“We are devastated that he has been taken from us in such cruel and senseless circumstances, and as we process such an overwhelming loss, we take solace in the fact that he will always be remembered for the remarkable man that he was.”

The Liverpool ECHO reported that an update earlier today, April 20, police confirmed they had charged Stephen Bates, 41, of Herondale Road, Mossley Hill, with murder after he was arrested at the scene on Friday night.

A police cordon and large blue tent remained in place on Stonyhurst Road on Saturday afternoon, with a car positioned across the road within it, as forensic teams investigated.

At the scene, neighbours told the ECHO they heard shouting in the street before the incident. They said a house party had been held that evening at an address on the road.

Yvonne Sowerby, who lives on Stonyhurst Road, told the ECHO: “We saw people arriving around 7pm. We saw people getting out with gift bags and cards. We knew there was a party going on.

“Then at 11ish, I’d gone to bed but heard a commotion. It seemed to go away for five or ten minutes.

‌”Then all of a sudden, I jumped out of bed and ran to the window because some noise disturbed me. I looked out of the front bedroom window and there was a car across the road, where the tent is now.

“At the far side of the car there was a group of people looking down at the ground. Obviously there was somebody down there. The next thing the blue lights were all here.”