Nurse jailed for killing her parents

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A nurse found guilty of using "extreme violence" to murder her elderly parents was jailed for life yesterday with a minimum term of 18 years.

Susan Toop killed her father, Arthur Toop, 82, and mother, Joan, 74, at their bungalow in Bournemouth on 28 November 2008. The unmarried 54-year-old, who lived with her parents, stabbed them several times before hitting them repeatedly with a flat iron. Toop had pleaded guilty to manslaughter on the grounds of diminished responsibility, but was found guilty of murder by a jury at Winchester Crown Court in July.

Sentenced to two life terms at the Royal Courts of Justice in London by Mr Justice David Clarke, Toop was told by the judge she had done a "terrible thing", killing her parents with "great violence".