Sadie Hartley murder: Woman jailed over 'demonic bunny boiler' murder of love rival
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A woman who spent 18 months plotting to kill the partner of her ex-lover is facing life imprisonment after being found guilty of the murder of businesswoman Sadie Hartley.
Sarah Williams, 35, and accomplice Katrina “Kitt” Walsh, 56, have been found guilty of the murder of 60-year-old Ms Hartley at her home in Helmshore, Lancashire, on 14 January, following a seven-week trial.
Ms Hartley was the partner of Ian Johnston, a 57-year-old ex-fireman Williams had previously been in a sexual relationship with. Williams had murdered Ms Hartley in order to have ex-lover Mr Johnston to herself, Preston Crowd Court heard.
Mr Johnston had in 2014 ended his relationship with Williams, who was described in court as “obsessive” and “jealous”, and started a new relationship with Ms Hartley.
The court heard how Williams shot Ms Hartley with a 500,000 volt stun gun as she answered the door of her home. The mother of two was left-semi paralysed in the hallway of her home as Williams then stabbed her with “demonic savagery” in the face and neck. She was left in a pool of blood in her hallway suffering more than 50 injuries in total.
Ms Hartley had been alone in her home at the time of the attack as Mr Johnston was away on a skiing holiday in the Swiss Alps.
A diary kept by Walsh and seized by detectives was described as an “extraordinarily revealing document” that chronicled the plotting of the two women to kill Ms Hartley over a period of nearly 18 months.
An entry 17 months before Ms Hartley’s murder, Walsh wrote that “Sarah came round so got caught up in endless murder plots for Ian’s other half.”
At one point, Walsh attempted to recruit her ex-husband for his “skill set”, but was unsuccessful. In June last year she recorded that the pair were “seriously talking of getting rid of her opponent… she does seem to be a totally evil bitch”.
Just two months later she wrote: "Wow, I may get to be instrumental in helping remove the awful woman! This may happen. Wow! Am unexpectedly excited by it. Was so buzzing so much I needed a Southern Comfort to wind down a bit."
She also recorded the intention to use an Isis flag “to mislead the investigation,” and recorded thoughts of “a hit” on a motorcycle. The diary included details of her and Williams’ trip to Germany to purchase the stun gun, and at one point wrote: "I have no moral qualms, just a serious 'don't let us get caught twinge."
The court heard how Mr Johnston had continued to exchange texts and explicit photographs with Williams while in a relationship with Ms Hartley. He called himself a “victim” in the affair but admitted he “should’ve had more sense” than to swap sex texts with a woman more than 20 years his junior.
But he said his actions should not be blamed for Ms Hartley’s eventual murder. "I think there's a lot of blokes out there going, 'But for the Grace of God go I"', he said.
"I've had to do a lot in my life that's been hard, 31 years in the fire service wasn't necessarily always easy. "This eight months has just been the most horrendous. You just get a kicking every day and I want the kicking to stop now and I know it won't for a while."
A tearful Mr Johnston added: "And if anybody wants to blame that on a few ridiculous bloody texts then it's just outrageous."
Additional reporting by Press Association