JAILED: 26 year old Newark man sentenced to life for murder of Claire Ablewhite
John Jessop stabbed the 47 year old to death at her home in Colston Bassett last February.
A man's been sentenced to life in prison, for the murder of a woman he had had a short relationship with.
On 25 February 2022, John Jessop cycled from his home in Newark to Clair Ablewhite’s home in Colston Bassett, Nottinghamshire.
While in her house, he attacked her, punching her repeatedly, before stabbing her to death.
He then cycled back to Newark.
The alarm was raised when a friend noticed that Clair had not been to feed her horses.
Her body was discovered at her home by her dad.
John Jessop was identified as a suspect through CCTV and phone analysis.
He was charged with murder and pleaded guilty at Nottingham Crown Court in October 2022.
He was today (4th JAN) sentenced to life imprisonment with a minimum term of 17 years and 8 months years.
BUILDING THE CASE
It all started with a grainy CCTV image at night of a hooded man lingering near the home of 47-year-old Clair Ablewhite.
Police had arrived at a house in Hall Lane in Colston Bassett on Saturday, 26 February, to find the mum-of three dead in her pyjamas.
It was immediately ruled as murder as she had sustained serious stab wounds to the neck and chest.
Forensically her killer had left hardly a trace of DNA at the scene apart from shoe prints marked in blood inside the address.
Clair’s mobile phone was missing. There was no murder weapon. The crime was committed in a remote location, with fears that CCTV footage and witnesses would be hard to come by.
The grainy image of a hooded man was their first shot of the killer.
And it provided plenty of clues for detectives including his height, what he was wearing, including his Adidas trainers, which matched the same blooded footprints left in Clair’s kitchen.
As police spent countless hours trawling through CCTV and Dash Cam footage, a police search team had made a new discovery – Clair’s mobile phone in a local stream.
Having been severely water damaged, officers worked at retrieving the information from within.
Clair had been using a dating website and within Whatsapp messages there was one man that had not come forward to assist police with their investigations.
It was 26-year-old John Jessop from Newark.
Jessop had travelled 17 miles from his home address by bike to commit murder and then travelled 17 miles back home.
He had made one stop at a shop to buy a pasty, which he paid for in cash, on his bike ride to the scene.
Footage from the shop picked up a front zip on his jacket which matched the same jacket on Clair’s next-door neighbour’s CCTV camera.
Jessop left his phone at home on the night of the murder.
But data from Jessop’s phone showed that he installed Google Maps, which was subsequently deleted the day before Clair was killed.
Police managed to build a CCTV picture of Jessop leaving his Newark address and travelling to Colston Bassett by bike.
On March 11, Jessop was charged with the murder of Clair Ablewhite.
Detective Inspector Mel Crutchley was the senior investigating officer in charge of the case and says:
“This was a solid investigation with many officers working all hours to catch Clair’s killer. The CCTV work was integral and managed to catch Jessop’s route from Newark to Colston Bassett.
“The neighbour played a major part in helping with our investigation by providing that first CCTV image of the killer and I would like to thank him personally for travelling home from France to help us bring Clair’s killer to justice.
“It is also a timely reminder for people to think about who they interact with online and to ensure their safety is protected from violent and predatory people like Jessop.
“Throughout this investigation, Jessop has shown no remorse for what he did to Clair. He has consistently provided ‘no comment’ in interview and offered up no apology.
“The attack he inflicted on Clair was brutal and relentless, causing catastrophic injuries which finally led to her death.
“At the same time that Clair’s dad discovers his daughter’s body and tries to provide CPR - Jessop is enjoying his first pint in a pub in Newark with mates.
“He has taken away a loving, caring, and outgoing mum, daughter, sister, and friend to many.
“Today’s sentence will never bring back Clair, but it does mean that Jessop will spend a considerable part of his life behind prison bars, and I hope this gives her family some comfort.”
Hannah Strawson from the CPS said:
“The violence John Jessop used showed that he could only have been acting with the intention to kill or do serious harm. He went to considerable lengths to try and avoid police detection after he attacked Clair Ablewhite but has now admitted to her murder and has faced the consequences of his criminal actions in court.
"I would like to express my sincere condolences to Ms Ablewhite’s family and loved ones as they come to terms with this tragic and sudden loss.”