Two women have been sentenced to life in prison for the murder of businesswoman Sadie Hartley, a crime a judge described as one of 'pure evil'. Sarah Williams, 35, and Katrina Walsh, 56, were convicted after a seven-week trial at Preston Crown Court. Williams was ordered to serve a minimum of 30 years, while Walsh must serve at least 25 years.
The court heard that Williams, a travel agent, had plotted for 18 months to kill Hartley, 60, because she wanted to resume an affair with Hartley's partner, Ian Johnston. Williams used a stun gun bought from Germany to paralyse Hartley before stabbing her more than 40 times at her home in Helmshore, Lancashire. Walsh, a horse riding instructor, acted as an accomplice, helping plan the murder and delivering flowers to Hartley's door as a dry run a week before the killing.
Passing sentence, Justice Turner described the murder as 'a crime of obsession, of arrogance, of barbarity, but above all it was a crime of pure evil'. He noted that Williams and Walsh had acted together in a scheme that involved meticulous planning, including a trip to Germany to purchase the stun gun and the creation of a detailed diary chronicling their plans.
Prosecutor John McDermott QC told the jury that the plot was akin to 'the stuff of spy novels'. The jury heard that Williams had become infatuated with Johnston after meeting him at an indoor ski slope in 2012, and continued to exchange explicit texts and photographs with him up to days before the murder, despite his relationship with Hartley. Walsh's diary revealed the pair's 17-month plan to eliminate Hartley.
Hartley's daughter, Charlotte, broke down in tears as the guilty verdicts were read out. A gasp was heard from the public gallery. Johnston, who was on a skiing trip when Hartley was killed, had earlier told the court that his relationship with Williams was 'just sex'. However, Walsh told police that Williams would do anything to be with him, including planting tracker devices on his car.
