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Megan Bills: Ashley Foster jailed for life for murder Megan Bills: Ashley Foster jailed for life for murder
(about 1 hour later)
A man who strangled a 17-year-old girl and hid her body in a clingfilm-wrapped wardrobe, hours after meeting her, has been jailed for her murder.A man who strangled a 17-year-old girl and hid her body in a clingfilm-wrapped wardrobe, hours after meeting her, has been jailed for her murder.
Ashley Foster, 24, used his shirt to strangle Megan Bills and left her body to decompose for 18 days at an ex-offenders' hostel in the West Midlands.Ashley Foster, 24, used his shirt to strangle Megan Bills and left her body to decompose for 18 days at an ex-offenders' hostel in the West Midlands.
He had been released from prison three days before the killing. The judge said Foster's conduct after the killing was "beyond belief".
Foster was given a life sentence and ordered to serve at least 26 years behind bars.Foster was given a life sentence and ordered to serve at least 26 years behind bars.
During the trial, he admitted preventing Megan's lawful burial but denied murder.During the trial, he admitted preventing Megan's lawful burial but denied murder.
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Foster came to the New Path of Life hostel, which provides housing for former offenders, three days after being released from prison for battery and witness intimidation.
Megan's body was found wrapped in a curtain inside the wardrobe by hostel staff after reports of a smell and was identified through dental records.
Wolverhampton Crown Court heard how Foster told his mother in a letter that he had concealed the teenager's body after accidentally throttling her during consensual sex.Wolverhampton Crown Court heard how Foster told his mother in a letter that he had concealed the teenager's body after accidentally throttling her during consensual sex.
Examination of Foster's mobile phones showed he had made numerous searches relating to strangulation and schoolgirls in the days after the murder in Brierley Hill on Easter Sunday last year. Prosecutor Crispin Aylett QC said Foster had "seemed his normal self" as he enjoyed a roast dinner in the aftermath of the murder and said he had smirked at a relative when asked why he needed to buy clingfilm.
Police said officers recovered Meghan's clothing, which Foster had disposed of in a bin, along with a torn shirt stained with her blood. Judge James Burbidge QC said after the killing, Foster had celebrated his birthday as normal and boasted about his sex life.
Megan's body was found at the New Path of Life hostel by staff who had inspected Foster's room after reports of a smell, which Foster claimed was from the carpets. He said: "Megan was vulnerable. Instead of acting in a compassionate, human and decent manner, you not only failed to ring the authorities, you bundled her body in a curtain or bedding and then placed her body in a wardrobe.
Foster came to the hostel, which provides housing for former offenders, days after being released from prison. "You left her body there to be discovered by others. That in itself is shocking."
He had been convicted on 28 November 2016 of battery and witness intimidation after an incident where he picked up a carving knife and and threatened to kill his sister.
CCTV footage of Megan's final movements shows her leaving the hostel with Foster to go to a local shop before returning to his room at about 15:35 GMT on 16 April 2017.
The jury were told she was not seen leaving the room and there is no other reliable evidence of her ever being seen alive again.
Megan's body was wrapped in a curtain inside the wardrobe and was identified through dental records, but was so badly decomposed that a post-mortem examination failed to establish how she died.
Prosecutor Crispin Aylett QC said: "If the defendant's purpose was to ensure that it would be as difficult as it could possibly be to work out how she died, he certainly achieved that aim."
He told jurors Foster had "seemed his normal self" as he enjoyed a roast dinner in the aftermath of the murder and said he had smirked at a relative when asked why he needed to buy clingfilm.
The court also heard a former partner of Foster said he had asked to choke her during sex but she had refused.
Megan was placed into foster care aged four and found a home with her adoptive parents aged seven.Megan was placed into foster care aged four and found a home with her adoptive parents aged seven.
Her parents said she had gone through a "turbulent" period, and had left the family home before her murder but was in the process of returning. Her parents said she had gone through a "turbulent" period and had left the family home before her murder but was in the process of returning.
Police said she was only reported missing the day after her body was found because she did not have a mobile phone and was difficult to contact. In a statement, Megan's family paid tribute to the teenager, who they described as "bubbly, caring and lively".
Megan's family paid tribute to the teenager, who they described as "bubbly, caring and lively". They said her death was "painful beyond words" and her murder "demonstrates an evil cruelty beyond any decent comprehension".
In a statement, they said that her death is "painful beyond words" and her murder "demonstrates an evil cruelty beyond any decent comprehension". Anjuli Shergill, from the Crown Prosecution Service, said Foster had deliberately hidden Megan's body for weeks, "so that forensic evidence would be destroyed".
"Foster took Megan's life for his own sexual gratification. He continued with his life as if nothing had happened."
Det Insp Caroline Corfield, from West Midlands Police, said: "[Megan] was a vulnerable young lady who would never have imagined the dangerous lair she was walking into when she entered Foster's room.
"Foster had an unnatural obsession with deviant sexual activity and he disposed of Megan's young life to satisfy his own twisted desires."