Shani Warren: Man jailed for life over body-in-lake murder

A man has been sentenced to a minimum of 30 years in prison for the murder of a woman found bound and gagged in a lake 35 years ago.

Shani Warren, who lived in Stoke Poges, was discovered in Taplow Lake, Buckinghamshire, in April 1987.

Donald Robertson was found guilty of the false imprisonment, indecent assault and murder of the 26-year-old.

He was also convicted of kidnapping and raping a 16-year-old girl in Slough in 1981.

Passing sentence at Reading Crown Court, Mr Justice Mark Wall said the wait for justice would have caused Ms Warren's family "extra anguish" on top of their "unimaginable" suffering after losing a loved one in "such brutal circumstances".

He said Robertson had shown "no remorse" for his behaviour.

"You did not even have the courage to attend this trial and confront the evidence of what you had done," he said.

"You are a self-centred man who cares nothing for the suffering and feelings of others and lacks any understanding of the way in which your conduct has destroyed and damaged other people's lives."

The court heard Robertson was a serial offender who had carried out attacks before and after he murdered Ms Warren.

In October 1981, he admitted the rape of a 14-year-old girl in Farnham Royal, and was convicted in 2010 of the rape of a 17-year-old girl who was walking home after missing the last train just a few miles from Taplow Lake in 1987.

On Good Friday in 1987, Ms Warren had gone out to dispose of grass cuttings and buy an Easter egg but never returned.

Her car was found abandoned in a layby on the A4 with the grass cuttings still inside - and the Easter egg in the footwell.

On Easter Saturday, a dog walker discovered Ms Warren's body in the lake.

Her hands had been tied with a car jump-lead, her feet bound with a tow rope and her mouth gagged with a piece of cloth.

The jury was told a post-mortem examination gave her cause of death as drowning, a fate she feared, Mr Wall said.

He added that he "hoped" she had passed out from being strangled so she did not know "her life was to end in the way she most feared".

Six years prior to murdering Ms Warren, Robertson kidnapped and raped a 16-year-old girl in Farnham Lane, Slough, the court heard.

He was also found guilty of the attack on Tuesday.

His victim described Robertson as "the monster that put my life in turmoil".

Mr Wall read his remarks to Robertson despite him not being in court.

He said it was only 41 years later that the victim could "feel secure in the knowledge that her assailant has finally been caught".

"You have blighted much of that lady's life for a few moments of selfish pleasure," he said.

Ms Warren's brother, Stephen Warren, said his family "cannot imagine what the last moments of Shani's life must have been like".

He said his parents, who died last year, "never recovered" from her untimely death.

Robertson was convicted in both cases thanks to new DNA evidence discovered by a police cold case team.

Thames Valley Police said it was sorry it had taken so long to bring Ms Warren's killer to justice and that the case was able to come to court due to advancements in forensic science.

Mr Justice Wall said the 30-year sentence gave Robertson "little hope of ever being able to apply for release".

He added that Robertson will only be released in 2052 if the parole board regarded it as "appropriate to do so".

"Otherwise, you will spend the rest of your life in prison, however long you may live for," he said.

Robertson was sentenced to 30 years for murder, 10 years each for the charges of false imprisonment, kidnap and rape, and eight years for indecent assault - all to run concurrently.

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