Sarah Brierley murder: Man who killed housemate jailed for life

A man who murdered his housemate before stealing her possessions has been jailed for life.

David Scott, 40, bludgeoned Sarah Brierley, 49, to death with a blunt object in her home in Woodhouse, Sheffield, in February.

He then left her body to decompose as he and partner Zoe Clark, 42, removed items including a TV from the flat.

Scott, of Abbeyfield Road, Burngreave, was convicted of murder and theft at Sheffield Crown Court.

He was sentenced to a minimum of 29 years in prison on Thursday.

Clark, of Skelton Lane, Woodhouse, was cleared of Ms Brierley's murder but convicted of theft and jailed for a year.

Ms Brierley's body was found wrapped in a duvet on a sofa in her flat in Skelton Lane on 20 February after South Yorkshire Police (SYP) officers raided the property as part of an unrelated robbery investigation.

A post-mortem examination found she had died a week earlier from severe head injuries caused by at least five blows with a blunt weapon such as a hammer.

Police said she had no self-defence injuries, "suggesting the killer struck when she was least expecting it". Traces of rat poison were found by her body.

Prosecutor David Brooke told a trial last month Scott and Clark, who had both been living with Ms Brierley, were seen "coming and going to the flat" in the days before her body was found.

A jury heard Scott made "incriminating admissions" about his involvement in the killing, saying in text messages he had "done it" and was "looking at 20 years".

He also told Clark in a love letter: "I can do 20 years, if I know you're there at the end."

Dt Ch Insp Andy Knowles, who led SYP's investigation, said: "Sarah died at the hands of someone she trusted enough to live with her.

"The intent of Scott has never come to light, and we do not know why he decided to end an innocent woman's life.

"I hope today's verdict and knowing that Scott will spend time behind bars helps bring closure to those who knew Sarah."

Scott was also found guilty of a robbery, unrelated to Ms Brierley's death, in which he attacked a man with a hammer.

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