Mother-of-five murdered by boyfriend while on police bail, court told
Holly Sanchez was found dead in May 2023
Last updated 25th Jun 2024
A mother-of-five who told Sussex Police she was scared her boyfriend would kill her, as she described his abuse of her, was found dead with black eyes and fractured ribs less than a month later, a court has heard.
Holly Sanchez, 32, had repeatedly denied being attacked by her boyfriend Ryan Evans in the months before her death, before telling officers that he kept "beating the shit" out of her, put out a cigarette on her face, bit her fingers and regularly called her a slut.
A trial at Brighton Crown Court heard how Evans, 31, nicknamed Mulch, had been arrested by police on several occasions and denied allegations of abuse.
He was on bail conditions which said he must not contact Ms Sanchez, when she was found dead on the floor in his lounge in Oates Walk, Crawley, on May 13, 2023.
Opening the case on Tuesday, prosecutor Ryan Richter said it was immediately apparent to police who found Ms Sanchez, that she had multiple injuries, with a swollen face "completely discoloured by bruising".
Evans was also at the property, and had said when he went to sleep on the sofa that Ms Sanchez was alive, but he woke to find her unresponsive, screamed, and called the police, the prosecutor said.
Mr Richter said: "It is the prosecution case that in the short time they were together, Mr Evans regularly subjected her to domestic violence, beating her and hurting her.
"The prosecution maintains that he caused the serious injuries which led to her death in the few days before she died.
"The nature of the injuries and what you will hear of his assaults upon her establishes, the prosecution says, that he clearly intended to cause at least serious bodily harm to Ms Sanchez.
"It is the prosecution case that he murdered her."
According to an expert in neuropathology, Professor Al-Sarraj, her significant brain injury was similar to those sustained in cases of road collisions and falls from significant height, Mr Richter said.
Jurors heard how a neighbour's doorbell camera captured Evans dragging Ms Sanchez by the hair through the street, and neighbours also heard Evans punching her in the face, calling her a "disgusting c***", while she asked him to stop hurting her.
On April 18, Ms Sanchez told police during a 40-minute conversation about the abuse she suffered, and said she was scared he would kill her if he found out she had been talking to police, and had not "grassed" before.
The next day she called the police to retract what she said, the prosecutor told jurors, telling them she was an alcoholic and she remembered now that she had not been attacked, but had fallen out of a car.
Despite this, Evans was arrested and bailed on April 26, but denied the allegations, telling officers she was a "fat slob" who was an alcoholic who fell over all the time.
A friend of Evans, Adam Roberts, told police that the day before Ms Sanchez's death, he had seen Evans going "mental" at her for about five minutes, punching her and stamping on her head.
The prosecution said a post-mortem examination of Ms Sanchez's body showed chest injuries and damage to her left lung that had caused her to develop pneumonia, which led to her death.
Evans was arrested on the morning of May 13 and told police she had turned up at his home two days before her death, with what looked like "sunburn" on her face, and was bleeding from her nose and mouth, Mr Richter said.
The prosecutor added that Evans told police it had got worse as the days went on, but nothing happened at the house to contribute to her injuries.
Evans, of Crawley, denies murdering Ms Sanchez, as well as unlawful wounding, assault occasioning actual bodily harm and controlling and coercive behaviour.
The trial continues.