Cocaine addict given life for murder of his wife

A cocaine addict has been jailed for life and will serve at least 17 years behind bars after he admitted murdering his wife.

Paul Knight, 36, pleaded guilty to the murder of Isobella Knight after originally pleading guilty to manslaughter.

The 32-year-old mother was found dead by police at Donnington Road in Burton Latimer, Northamptonshire, on 13 June.

The court heard she was strangled while the couple's two children were asleep in a bedroom upstairs.

During sentencing at Northampton Crown Court, Judge Adrienne Lucking said: "You lost your temper and, in a fit of rage, killed Isobella Knight.

"No sentence that I can pass can compensate or comfort your children or the family of Isobella Knight."

Knight appeared in the dock wearing a pink shirt and a dark blue blazer, looking at the floor throughout the hearing.

Prosecutor Pavlos Panayi KC told the court the murder must have taken place between 23:52 BST and 02:24 BST, with the cause of death being pressure applied to the neck for a "long enough period to cause cardiac arrest".

Panayi said the motivation for the murder was unclear, "other than that [Knight] exploded in anger whilst under the influence of a significant amount of cocaine".

He outlined how the couple were in "significant" debt following the purchase of their home in 2022 – a situation he said was exacerbated by Knight's heavy cocaine use.

Panayi said the strain caused frequent arguments between the pair, and they had considered separation.

Before and after the killing, Knight watched pornography on both his own and his wife's phone until shortly before 04:00 BST.

The following morning, Knight asked his mother to look after the children, claiming that he and Isobella were suffering from stomach bugs.

He had also written a suicide note admitting to the murder, which he left in the downstairs hallway.

After his mother collected the children, she used the toilet and the children walked past the bedroom where Isobella's body was lying.

Knight then made several unsuccessful attempts to take his own life before leaving the property and crashing his car in the car park of a nearby McDonald's at about 15:30 BST.

Police officers who attended the scene described Knight's behaviour as odd, and they decided to search his home.

There, Isobella's body and the suicide note were found.

In a victim impact statement read to the court, Isobella's mother, Helena Sharrott, said her "first and last thoughts" every day were of her "beautiful daughter being strangled".

Addressing Knight during sentencing, Judge Lucking added: "It's clear that you were in the grip of an entrenched drug habit... [but] nothing excused or justified your violent attack. It was a particularly brutal way of ending a life."

Knight will serve a minimum term of 17 years and one month before he can be considered for parole.

Speaking outside court, Det Insp Torie Harrison said: "Whilst no sentence will make up for the loss of such a wonderful woman, I am pleased Paul Knight has been jailed with no release until he's into his 50s."

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