viewers are speculating that a cherished character, Aaron Dingle (Danny Miller), may be departing after nearly two decades on the show.

Since his first appearance in 2008, Aaron quickly became a fan favourite with numerous significant storylines, including affairs, a romance with Robert Sugden (Ryan Hawley), and time spent in prison.

Currently, he is involved with newcomer John Sugden (Oliver Fainworth), who is Robert's half-brother. However, this week saw a dramatic turn of events for Aaron.

As viewers will remember, Ruby Fox-Miligan's (Beth Cordingly) estranged father Anthony (Nicholas Day) arrived in the Dales last year, and it was later revealed that he had raped Ruby as a teenager and is the biological father of Steph (Georgia Jay). This week, the truth about Anthony's horrific crimes came to light.

Aaron, who himself was sexually abused by his father Gordon Livesy (Gary Mavers), confronted Anthony at the depot. In shocking scenes, an enraged Aaron attacked Anthony before leaving the depot.

A distressed Aaron then confessed to John, who insisted they remove Anthony's body from the crime scene.

The duo headed back to the depot, only to discover Anthony had passed away. As Aaron spiralled into a state of panic, John took charge, assuring him that he would handle the situation.

Together, they cleaned up the evidence and disposed of Anthony's body. Now, viewers are worried that it's only a matter of time before Aaron is sent to prison, marking a shocking exit from the show.

On an Emmerdale Facebook fan page, one fan expressed their concern: "Hope it's not Aaron who it's revealed that killed him, don't want him to leave again."

Another fan shared the same sentiment: "I know I thought the same I'll be gutted."

A third fan simply replied: "Probably," accompanied by a crying face emoji.

Emmerdale airs weeknights on ITV1 and ITVX at 7.30pm