Man who killed 4 members of same south London family sentenced to life in prison
Joshua Jacques has been told he'll serve at least 46 years behind bars.
Last updated 1st Mar 2024
A Lewisham man has been sentenced to at least 46 years for killing his girlfriend and three other members of her family.
Joshua Jacques, who the Old Bailey heard was a cannabis abuser, claimed he stabbed his girlfriend and three of her family members as a "sacrifice".
His trial heard the 29-year old was fuelled by drugs and alcohol when he attacked Samantha Drummonds and her family with a knife in their home in Delaford Road, Bermondsey, south London, early on April 25 2022.
Police found the bodies of Ms Drummonds, 27, her mother Tanysha Ofori-Akuffo, 45, grandmother Dolet Hill, 64, and Ms Hill's partner, Denton Burke, 58, after being alerted to a disturbance by a neighbour.
Officers found Mr Burke's body at the foot of the stairs and the three women "heaped together" in the kitchen.
Armed officers discovered Jacques naked and lying in the upstairs bathroom in a praying position, screaming "Allah, take me!", "Kill me now", "Get rid of me", and "God please forgive me".
Later, at Lewisham Hospital, Jacques said: "I ain't even in the wrong, I did them for sacrifice", and also warned: "I will do something stupid again."
He admitted manslaughter but denied murder on the basis that he was mentally unwell at the time.
Family impact statements
Paul Raudnitz KC, mitigating for Jacques at the sentencing hearing, said the attack was not pre-meditated.
He also read out an apology from his client to the victims' families - the first time that Jacques has expressed remorse for his actions.
"I would like to say to the family of the deceased, I am truly and sincerely sorry for all of the anguish, pain and heartache I have caused," Jacques wrote.
He added: "I have discussed it with myself and I cannot believe that I am the cause of this monstrosity."
"It is like something from a horror movie."
In a victim impact statement, Tracey-Ann Henry, the daughter of Ms Hill and the sister of Ms Ofori-Akuffo, said her mother had only just beaten cancer before she was murdered.
She said her mother had her last radiotherapy session the day before she was stabbed to death.
Ms Henry, who is the aunt of Ms Drummonds, said: "How could someone kill four people in one night?
"It is like something from a horror movie."
Danny Ofori-Akuffo, the husband of Tanysha, said in his impact statement that he had "cried like a child" following the incident.
"I am a proud man and I have cried like a child in front of so many people," he said.
He described his horror at having to identify his wife's body.
"I remember wailing out in pain," he said.
"My heart had shattered into pieces."
An Old Bailey jury deliberated for two hours to find Jacques, from Minard Road, Lewisham, south-east London, guilty of four counts of murder.