Michael Bretton, 41, from Shaftesbury, Dorset, has been sentenced to 29 years and six months in prison for the murder of Craig Hurcombe, 39, who was in a relationship with Bretton's former partner Kate Saunders.
Bretton tracked Hurcombe and Saunders with GPS devices before attacking Hurcombe with a samurai sword at his workplace in Somerset on January 1. Prosecutors described the killing as a "cold-blooded execution."
Jealous obsession
The court heard that Bretton had become "obsessed" with his ex-partner and her new love after Saunders ended their casual relationship when he wanted more. He placed GPS trackers on both of their cars, and a confrontation happened when he followed them into a pub in Somerset, leading to police being called.
After the murder, Saunders received texts from Hurcombe's phone telling her not to be "hard" on Bretton and suggesting she get back together with him. In reality, Bretton had taken her SIM card and used it in his own phone.
Claim of accident
In his defence, Bretton claimed Hurcombe's death was a "tragic accident," saying he had fallen and impaled himself on a metal shaft. He admitted he "panicked" and buried the body in a wood, burned his clothes and set Hurcombe's car on fire to cover up the crime. The jury rejected his version and found him guilty of murder.
Bretton had also been charged with stalking Saunders, but the jury was not asked to return a verdict on that charge.
Sentencing
Judge Hart, sentencing Bretton, said: "If you read about this case, you'd think it was something from a crime novel." He called Bretton a "cowardly and secret assassin," adding: "You were driven by jealousy, not love. You took him by surprise and didn't give him the slightest chance to live."
In a statement, Hurcombe's mother described the loss as "beyond measure," adding: "to murder Craig in such a brutal way and then send messages pretending to be him caused our family unimaginable pain. More than 210 people came to his funeral. It showed just how many lives Craig touched."
Detective Inspector Neil Meade, of Avon and Somerset Police's Major Crime unit, said: "you cannot imagine the fear Craig must have felt when he was confronted with a samurai sword. It was a horrific, lonely place to lose your life."
