Life sentence for footballer who stabbed girlfriend to death
A “promising young footballer” was given life imprisonment with a minimum ten year sentence today for the murder of his 15-year-old girlfriend.
Andrew Hall, 18, pleaded guilty to stabbing “loving and caring” Harlington Upper School student Megan Leigh Peat at least 60 times in June of this year, while two-and-a-half times over the drink-drive limit.
The attack with a bread knife and vegetable knife left Megan with “catastrophic injuries” including partial severance of the nose, a severed jugular artery, fractured jaw, stab wounds to her chest, and defence injuries on her hands and arms.
Luton Crown Court heard how, on June 9, Megan and Hall had been arguing about his jealousy and trust issues in the hours leading up to her death, and in text messages to her friends Megan said she loved him but was “scared”.
In sentencing Hall, Judge Richard Foster said: “It seems both you and Megan had drank too much. It’s plain from all that is said by others that the relationship was one in which there was arguing from time to time and there was also this jealousy.”
Megan, who lived in Flitwick Road, Westoning, and Hall, who lived in Robin Close, Flitwick, had argued while out drinking with friends in Ampthill.
Megan had gone back to her home but she returned to the White Hart Hotel in Dunstable Street as she was determined to sort things out with Hall. The couple of nine months seemed to make up and were seen leaving the pub holding hands to go to a mutual friend’s house in Ailesbury Road at about 11.50pm.
They were not seen again until Hall returned to the pub at 1.30am covered in blood saying he had killed someone and that he “loved her”.
Megan was found lying in a pool of blood, with marks on the laminated floor around her showing the impact of where knives had landed.
She showed no signs of life.
Judge Foster said it was a “vicious and relentless attack” and that “there was a catastrophic loss of control no doubt in drink by Andrew Hall.”
He said: “Nobody can quite believe what Andrew Hall did that night. Nothing in what anyone saw in him prior to that day could have foretold what he would do.
“He had a very promising career ahead of him, he was player of the season at Stoke City Academy last season.”
“He is conscious that he has taken the life of a young woman and he is deeply remorseful of that.”
Hall spoke only to confirm his name and enter his plea, but a letter written to the court said he was truly sorry and would regret his actions for the rest of his life.
A statement from Megan’s family said: “Today we are satisfied that Andrew Hall has pleaded guilty to this offence. The day Megan died will be forever etched in our memories, it was the day our lives were torn apart. Megan was a healthy, vibrant, loving and caring person who was very much loved by all her family and all her many friends. She had her whole life ahead of her.
“Before her untimely death we were an ordinary family leading an ordinary life. Since that fateful day our world has changed beyond recognition. The pain of losing our beautiful daughter and the tragic and awful way she died will stay with us for the rest of our lives. Megan was loved so much and will be missed forever.
“We would like to thank all police forces involved for their support, especially our family liaison team”.
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Weather for Luton
Wednesday 22 May 2013
Today
Cloudy
Temperature: 3 C to 15 C
Wind Speed: 20 mph
Wind direction: North west
Tomorrow
Light showers
Temperature: 4 C to 10 C
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