Overview
- Cheshire Police charged 48-year-old Peter Scargill following consultation with the Crown Prosecution Service.
- The counts are manslaughter, stalking involving serious alarm and distress, and blackmail.
- Scargill, of Cherry Road, Chester, is scheduled to appear at Warrington Magistrates' Court today.
- The charges relate to the June 1, 2023 death of 38-year-old Jennifer Smith at a Birch Grove address in Ellesmere Port.
- Police and prosecutors say proceedings are now active and urge no reporting, commentary or online sharing that could prejudice the case.