'Our lives have been well and truly ripped apart', says family of murdered Nuneaton woman
Megan Newborough, 23, was strangled and dumped in a country lane in Leicestershire in August last year.
The family of Megan Newborough said they are "the ones serving the life sentence" after Ross McCullam was unanimously convicted of her murder at Leicester Crown Court.
McCullam, who had admitted manslaughter before his trial, throttled and cut the throat of the popular HR worker, who he had been dating for less than a month.
In a statement released after his conviction, Ms Newborough's family said: "We simply don't know where to begin.
"We're a large, close-knit family and our lives have been well and truly ripped apart.
"Megan was only 23 when she was killed - she was just days away from her 24th birthday and was about to move into her own house. We've still got things she'd bought and items she was going to take with her, which serve as a cruel reminder.
"Our hearts were shattered beyond repair... We're the ones serving the life sentence."
"Having a knock at your door in the early hours of the morning to say a loved one is dead is something nobody should ever have to deal with. At that moment, our hearts were shattered beyond repair. Again, it's almost impossible to describe how numb you become. You're unable to think, sleep or function properly.
"Megan's story is our story - we're the ones serving the life sentence.
"She was an incredibly good judge of character. She knew who she could and couldn't trust. She left home that night in a very happy mood. The thought of what happened to her just hours later - and the evil facing her - is something we can't escape.
Detectives described McCullam as "sadistic" and said he would likely have killed again had he not been caught.
Detective Inspector Jenni Heggs said: "I think he has enjoyed it and been sexually aroused by it, by what he's done. That's a dangerous mix."
The pair, who met while both working at brickmaker Ibstock, had only been seeing each other three weeks.
McCullam claimed the murderous attack was triggered because he suffered PTSD, having been a victim of childhood sexual abuse.
But the prosecution said those claims were a "pack of lies" McCullam used to cover up for his violent attack.
Instead, the Crown alleged, McCullam murdered Ms Newborough because of his anger at being sexually impotent immediately prior to the attack, and on an earlier occasion the weekend before.
McCullam will be sentenced on Friday.