THE girlfriend of a gangster who master-minded the kidnap and murder of a housing manager has admitted helping her boyfriend as he tried to cover his tracks.

Paul Brady was lured to a homes complex near Bacup, where he was battered by between 10 and 15 masked armed attackers and bundled into a van. His body has never been found.

Earlier this month Paul Devalda, 35, was jailed for a minimum of 21 years after a jury found him guilty of conspiracy to kidnap, and the murder of Mr Brady.

The jury failed to reach a verdict in the case of Devalda’s girlfriend Stacia Crossley, 28, who was charged with assisting an offender, and police were in discussions with the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) over whether she should face a re-trial.

But Crossley, of Padiham Road, Burnley, yesterday pleaded guilty to helping Devalda in his endeavours to cover his tracks.

In the seven-week trial the jury heard Mr Brady had been involved in a £350,000 cocaine deal and had the drugs at his Rochdale home.

The prosecution claimed Devalda, a drug dealer involved in organised crime, targeted Mr Brady after learning of the large cocaine haul.

Mr Brady was lured to the exclusive Lynns Court complex in Weir, where he was site manager, on August 1 2009, to repair a house.

The jury was told that after the ambush Crossley obtained a passport application for Devalda as he sought to flee the country.

But she and Devalda were caught out when they were recorded speaking about the offence in a hotel room in Rochdale.

Detective Superintendent Neil Hunter, who led the investigation, said: “This was a criminal vendetta kidnap and should be a strong warning to any individual who chooses to get involved in such criminality. We will robustly investigate any such offences and relentlessly pursue the people responsible.”

Crossley will be sentenced at Manchester Crown Court on Tuesday April 19.