Devon man jailed for double murder

Neil Langmead convicted of killing estranged wife and her friend in attack in Barnstaple house A “controlling and dominating” husband has been jailed for a minimum of 30 years for the murder of his estranged wife and her friend in a frenzied sex attack. Neil Langmead, a builder aged 41, repeatedly stabbed Deborah Langmead and Donna St John, both 35 and both mothers of two children. The women were found almost side by side in the blood-soaked kitchen of a burning house in Barnstaple, Devon, in August last year. Both had been sexually assaulted and Mrs Langmead had been sexually mutilated by her husband, either as she lay unconscious or after she was dead. A 13-day trial at Exeter crowncourt heard that Langmead, who had a history of bullying behaviour towards his wife, had been unable to accept that she was starting divorce proceedings. He had been issued with a warning by police for harassing her a week before the murders. Mrs Langmead also had extra bolts put on the doors of the house to make her feel safer. The jury of nine women and three men rejected his version of events, in which he claimed that he had consensual sex with his wife, leading to an argument between the two women which became violent. He said he killed Mrs Langmead in self-defence after intervening and that she killed her friend. The jury accepted the prosecution claim that he had repeatedly stabbed the women before setting fire to the house to cover his tracks. Crime Steven Morris guardian.co.uk

Posted by on June 23, 2011. Filed under News, Politics, World News. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. You can skip to the end and leave a response. Pinging is currently not allowed.