My partner was killed for his £11,000 gold Rolex watch – I’m finally telling my side of the story

Dad-of-two Steven McMyler was attacked while sitting on a bench in the grounds of Wigan Parish Church on August 6, 2021.

He had been drinking in a nearby pub with Lewis Peake, 29, who decided to steal the 18-carat Rolex watch Steven was wearing.

Peake, Michael Wilson, 20, and two boys aged 14 and 17, deliberately helped or encouraged the attack, a jury at Manchester Crown Court found.

All four were also found guilty of conspiracy to rob.

Peake was jailed for 13 years, Wilson for nine years, and the two boys received sentences of six and eight years, respectively.

Jordan Short, 21, from Liverpool, was also jailed for 13-and-a-half years in 2022.

Sinead Dewar, who had been Steven’s partner for nearly eight years, said she wasn’t notified of Steven’s death by the police or his family following the attack.

She instead learned of his death from a friend in Wigan.

Sinead also claimed media reports failed to acknowledge her role in Steven’s life, while photos of his then ‘girlfriend’ appeared shortly after, leaving her devastated.

“As someone who stood by Steven for years, who loved him through both joy and darkness, I believe I deserve the opportunity to share our truth,” she said.

Sinead said they had separated months before his death due to his struggles with alcohol.

They had a daughter together, Baylie-Rein, but Sinead feels she was erased from Steven’s history, with no consideration for her or their child during the prosecution or family arrangements.

Sinead is determined that Baylie-Rein gets a “three-dimensional” picture of the father she barely remembers.

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She explained: “We lived as a family in Blackpool, raising our daughter together. Our relationship was filled with deep love, shared memories and struggles that profoundly shaped us both.

“At the time of Steven’s death, he had been living elsewhere for a few months due to personal challenges. It was deeply painful to see that brief period portrayed in the media as though it defined his life or our relationship.

“My role in his life – our history, the painful separation driven by his battle with alcohol, the years of devotion we shared – was completely erased. Walking away was one of the hardest choices I’ve ever made, and it was done only out of necessity.

“As someone who stood by Steven for years, who loved him through both joy and darkness, I believe I deserve the opportunity to share our truth.”

Sinead wants Baylie-Rein to know that Steven was “a magnetic soul with a wild heart and endless laughter”.

“He was one of a kind: the kind of soul you’ll never forget,” she said.

Since his death, Sinead has done everything she can to honour Steven’s memory for both his sake and their daughter’s.

“This isn’t just about me,” she said. “It’s about our daughter, who now has to make sense of her father’s absence from one-dimensional portrayals.

“I shouldn’t have to fight to explain my place in Steven’s life when I lived it with him for nearly a decade.”

Baylie-Rein was conceived through IVF after multiple heartbreaking losses.

Sinead still has six frozen embryos, but her declining health means she can no longer conceive.

Shortly after Steven’s death, Sinead arranged and paid for his grave and headstone at Layton Cemetery, Blackpool, close to the home they once shared.

His ashes lie there, and Sinead and Baylie-Rein have used the space as a quiet place of reflection and private grieving.

As part of her healing process, Sinead channelled her pain into creating a clay sculpture of Steven, capturing the joy of his signature “wooo hoo.”

It took 36 hours to complete and is now placed at his grave as a symbol of love and closure.

Sinead and Baylie-Rein have decided to move away from Blackpool to a new, undisclosed location.

She invited anyone who wishes to visit Steven’s grave to do so and hopes this will give her and Baylie-Rein the chance to finally have their story told “not just to honour Steven, but to give our daughter and me the voice we’ve long been denied.”

She added: “Though I still navigate the pain of losing Steven, I’ve been fortunate to find love again. After relationships that did not honour the profound bond I still hold with him, I am now with someone who respects that connection deeply.

“I am in a same-sex relationship, and while I don’t label myself as gay or straight, I believe in love that transcends gender: love for the soul, not the form. My partner is a beautiful soul who also knew Steven. In a twist of fate, we each gave birth to our daughters just one day apart.

“Though we are not legally married, we shared a spiritual blessing, and in my heart, she is my wife. She has supported my grief, shown unwavering compassion, and become a wonderful stepmother to Baylie-Rein. She even offered to raise a child with me using one of the frozen embryos Steven and I created, had my health allowed it.

“This relationship has brought me strength, support and healing through the darkest chapter of my life.”

Sinead said she is no longer in contact with Steven’s family. While she acknowledges their love for him, she explained she has experienced many painful challenges in trying to feel accepted.

But for now, she said, their focus is simply on honouring Steven in the way that feels true to them.