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A security guard who brutally stabbed and strangled his ex-girlfriend to death after she broke up with him has today been jailed for life.
Matthew Farmer, 42, knifed his ex-partner of 15 years, Stacey Clay, 39, in a frenzied attack, in the garden of her home in Bestwood, Nottingham.
CCTV footage saw him getting a knife from Tesco Extra, where he worked, a day before she was found dead.
Matthew Farmer, captured buying a knife at Tesco Extra, where he worked as a security guard
He had stabbed his ex-partner 21 times and grinned as he told police ‘I hope she is dead.’
Ms Clay, who had two children with Farmer, was found at the house with serious injuries at around 6am on May 19 last year.
The mother-of-four, who ended their relationship in April last year, died at Queen’s Medical Centre two weeks after the attack on June 2.
Farmer, who brutally stabbed and strangled his ex-girlfriend to death after she broke up with him has today been jailed for life, pictured buying a knife at Tesco Extra
Matthew Farmer, 42, knifed his ex-partner of 15 years, Stacey Clay, 39, (pictured) in a frenzied attack, in the garden of her home in Bestwood, Nottingham
Farmer, who had been behaving ‘threateningly’ towards his former partner after their break up, also tried to strangle her, Nottingham Crown Court heard.
PC Zoe East Tased Farmer as he was in the process of strangling Ms Clay on the grass. The court was told by PC East: ‘He looked me straight in the eyes and said: “I hope she is dead.”‘
Hours before the murder, Farmer was seen going into Ms Clay’s back garden and the she had told police he had been ‘prowling around the window’ according to the BBC. Her house was searched by police but Farmer could not be found.
At 6am, when Ms Clay went into her garden for a cigarette, Farmer came out from the barbecue where he had been hiding and attacked her with a knife he had bought from his workplace hours earlier.
Days earlier, Ms Clay had installed CCTV at the home she once shared with Farmer. The tragic footage of the attack, caught on the camera, was played in court and her screams could be heard as Farmer stabbed her.
According to NottinghamLive, Farmer was clutching a chocolate bar and energy drink while he hid behind the barbecue.
But when asked if he camped out waiting for his ex-partner, he told the court: ‘No, I did not.’
Farmer (pictured), who had been behaving ‘threateningly’ towards his former partner after their break up, also tried to strangle her, Nottingham Crown Court heard
John Cammegh QC, prosecuting, told the court that Farmer had not expressed any remorse for the murder.
Farmer then replied to Mr Cammegh: ‘Yes, I’m sorry. I hate myself every single day. I deserve to die for it.’
Farmer pleaded not guilty to murder but was convicted by a jury who took just 30 minutes to find him guilty yesterday.
The 42-year-old had previously told the jury that at the time of the murder ‘it was like being trapped inside someone else’s body.’
He said he was thinking about ending his life in the back garden and was ‘going to slit my wrists’.
Days earlier, Ms Clay had installed CCTV at the home she once shared with Farmer. The tragic footage of the attack, caught on the camera, was played in court and her screams could be heard as Farmer stabbed her. Pictured: Forensics at the home in Nottingham
Detective Inspector Rebecca Hodgman, of Nottinghamshire Police, said: ‘Farmer committed this awful and brutal act killing Stacey and taking her away from her family and friends.
‘This was a truly shocking and horrific act that killed a woman just trying to have a fresh start in life with her children.
‘I welcome the judge’s sentence and hope it gives Stacey’s family and friends some peace and comfort knowing he has not only been found guilty of her murder but will now spend the next 29 years behind bars paying for his crime.
‘We know that no sentence or time behind bars can ever bring back a loved one but we hope that Stacey’s family and friends can now begin to slowly rebuild their lives knowing Famer has been sentenced for his crime.
‘I would like to again reiterate our sincere condolences to Stacey’s family and friends on their loss.
‘Stacey was a much-loved mother who had ended a relationship with Farmer and was hoping to move on with her life.
‘We have worked incredibly hard to bring together all of the evidence and have worked closely with other teams throughout the force to bring Farmer to justice for his actions on that morning in May.’
Source: Daily Mail
