By Staff Reporter

Published at 14:20, Monday, 04 March 2013

A man whose partner was found dead on a country road near Kirkby Stephen has now been charged with causing her death by dangerous driving.

John Trevor Dent, 49, had previously been accused of the lesser offence of causing the death of 49-year-old grandmother Rose-Marie Valente by careless driving while he was over the legal drink-driving limit.

He pleaded not guilty to that charge when he appeared at Carlisle Crown Court in January.

But back at the same court today the prosecution revealed it had now decided to charge him with the more serious offence.

Dent pleaded not guilty to that offence too, and was remanded on bail to await his trial.

The case arises from an incident which resulted in Ms Valente being found dead in Swindale Grange Lane, Brough, near Dent's home, early on the morning of February 27 last year.

Ms Valente, a mother-of-five from Woodside Crescent, Bingley, West Yorks, is understood to have spent the weekend with Dent. The couple had been in a relationship for about ten years.

Her body was found after he reported that he had discovered her lying in the road.

He will go on trial on July 9. In the meantime he was remanded on bail.

Published by http://www.newsandstar.co.uk