The sister of former Aston Villa and England U21 footballer JLloyd Samuel is challenging a review of the investigation into his death in a fireball car crash after taking his children to school.
Leslie-Ann Samuel remains convinced it wasn’t her brother in the £100,000 Range Rover, which burst into flames after colliding with a van.
Ms Samuel challenged the police investigation into the 2018 collision, which resulted in a review of her complaint by Cheshire Constabulary’s Professional Standards Department.
She has until the end of the month to challenge the outcome – which dismissed her complaint as ‘repetition’.
Ms Samuel is unhappy that a key witness who ‘smashed two windows and saw nobody insider the car before it exploded’ was absent from the inquest, held in 2019.
The hearing found Mr Samuel – who played over 420 career matches including 240 in the Premier League before his death aged 37 – was the man who died in the crash, identifying his body via dental records rather than DNA.
In a social media post, Ms Samuel said: ‘As we approach the deadline of November 29, 2025, to submit documentation challenging the Cheshire Police (PSD) Professional Standards Department review outcome, I would like to provide context and clarity on the ongoing investigation into the body registered as my brother, JLloyd Samuel.
‘A key witness, who attempted to open my brother’s car door before the explosion and was requested to be present at the inquest, was notably absent.
‘This witness had previously stated that they smashed two windows, including the driver’s side window, and explicitly mentioned that there seemed to be no one in the vehicle before the car exploded.
‘This raises significant questions about the investigation’s integrity. What, or who am I to believe? Really!!
‘During our visit to Warrington NHS hospital to identify the body, we were met with a shocking revelation – there was no dead body present.
‘Based on the lack of evidence, I am now publicly stating that it seems, my brother is missing, not deceased. My evidential findings were excluded from Coroner Alan Moore’s inquest findings, which I find concerning.
‘The NHS’s legally binding document has been called into question, and with the support of my barrister, Timothy Becker, we are seeking answers. Court hearing documents referenced the NHS document as historical, which was disappointing given our quest for closure.
‘There is no evidence that Jlloyd Samuel was in the vehicle when it exploded. Given the investigation’s intensity, I have decided to exclude family members from this particular investigation to protect them from further harm.’
Delivering his ruling at the end of the inquest in Warrington, in November 2019, Coroner Mr Moore concluded that the body found in the car belonged to the footballer, born in Trinidad and Tobago, and who also played for Bolton Wanderers.
He said: ‘After careful consideration of the evidence, I find that in this case, and for the purposes of the inquest, the remains were those of J Lloyd Tafari Samuel.’
The inquest heard how the driver of the other vehicle, Frederick Dare, had tried his best to swerve out of the way of Mr Samuel’s car when the crash happened on West Lane, High Legh, Cheshire, on the morning of May 15 2018.
After the hearing, Ms Samuel vowed to seek a court order for a DNA test after a coroner ruled that the body found in a fireball car crash belonged to the former Premier League footballer.
Ms Samuel interrupted Mr Moore has he gave the ruling and told the court she had been denied the chance to privately test DNA taken from the body.
Mr Moore explained how the DNA samples belonged to the footballer’s next of kin, his wife Emma, who had said they would only be released if the sister could guarantee they are taken to a UK-registered laboratory.
The coroner told the sibling: ‘I cannot release any tissue to you for analysis – I cannot do that.’
‘I can only do that with the permission of the next of kin. If that permission is withheld then that is something for another court.
‘If you still wish to carry out your own private testing, I understand that but please understand I cannot release the tissue.’
Ms Samuel responded: ‘I will seek that order, and thank you for telling me that, Mr Alan Moore. I hope they keep the DNA samples until such case.’
Last December, a Netflix documentary revealed defender Samuel had married another woman who he met while playing in Iran for Esteghlal in 2011 and who was living in Dubai.
Helia Sahimi, a singer, called the footballer ‘the best husband I could have ever asked for’.
She married him in 2013 – five years after he married interior designer Emma Pritchard, the mother of his three children, with whom he lived in Cheshire.
‘I was trying to grieve my husband and find he has another life. Who is my husband – do I really know him?’ she said.
Pritchard had even met the other woman on a trip to Dubai, but she had introduced herself as a fortune teller.
Ms Pritchard was said to be in shock after learning of their relationship, which lasted up until his death.
‘About four weeks after JLloyd’s death, my friend said I’ve got something to tell you,’ she said.
‘JLloyd’s got another wife, another woman, and she’s just plastered herself all over his Instagram as his wife. I threw up everywhere. I said let me see the Instagram and I looked and said “oh my god”.’
Iranian fashion designer and singer Helia introduces herself in the documentary as ‘the wife of JLloyd Samuel’ describing their relationship as ‘like being in a dream’.
She said: ‘He was extremely romantic and even tried to learn Farsi so that we could speak to each other. I will always love him.’
The draft outcome into the review of Cheshire Police’s investigation has not yet been published.
Cheshire Police said it received a complaint from Ms Samuel, ‘which was reviewed by our professional standards department and dismissed as repetition’.
Mr Becker, of Midlands-based ShenSmith Barristers, has been contacted for comment.
