This article is from the source 'bbc' and was first published or seen on . It last changed over 40 days ago and won't be checked again for changes.
You can find the current article at its original source at https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-gloucestershire-46096779
The article has changed 3 times. There is an RSS feed of changes available.
| Version 0 | Version 1 |
|---|---|
| Man admits Gloucester wife and stepdaughter murders | |
| (about 1 hour later) | |
| A man has admitted murdering his wife and her 11-year-old daughter at their home in Gloucestershire. | A man has admitted murdering his wife and her 11-year-old daughter at their home in Gloucestershire. |
| The bodies of wedding planner Laura Mortimer, 31, and Ella Dalby were found in Dexter Way, Gloucester, on 28 May. | The bodies of wedding planner Laura Mortimer, 31, and Ella Dalby were found in Dexter Way, Gloucester, on 28 May. |
| They had been stabbed with a kitchen knife and were left lying side-by-side on the kitchen floor. | |
| Initially Christopher Boon, 28, of Dexter Way, denied murder but during a hearing at Bristol Crown Court on Monday he admitted the killings. | Initially Christopher Boon, 28, of Dexter Way, denied murder but during a hearing at Bristol Crown Court on Monday he admitted the killings. |
| Richard Smith QC, prosecuting, told the court: "It is clear that it was a sustained and brutal episode of violence in which Laura and Ella suffered multiple stab wounds about their faces and necks." | |
| Mr Smith said it appeared Ella went to help her mother after hearing her downstairs with Boon. | |
| "Having heard matters dramatically unfold in the kitchen, Ella got out of her bed and bravely came to the help of her mother," he said. | |
| "Eleven-year-old Ella must have witnessed, in part at least, the murderous attack on her mother before Boon also attacked his stepdaughter." | |
| After the attack, Boon left the property and phoned his mother to tell her what he had done. | |
| Mr Smith said police officers who attended ten minutes after Boon's phone call described the scene as "horrendous". | |
| Police said Boon had a history of violence and in 2010 he was handed a suspended sentence for attacking a former partner and her mother. | |
| Four years later he was accused of attacking Ms Mortimer but she did not want to press charges. | |
| Witnesses said he also threatened his partner's best friend and was verbally abusive to Ella at times. | |
| On 17 May this year, Ms Mortimer told a friend he "went for her" so she asked him for a divorce. He then punched a wall saying, "that was meant for your face". | |
| Boon will be sentenced later. | Boon will be sentenced later. |
| Ms Mortimer ran her own business, Sweet Beginnings, offering bespoke bridal gowns and wedding planning services. | |
| Ella was a student at Barnwood Park Arts College, where she had a passion for dance. |