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FACTFILE
Sunday 15th
April 2007. The body of
32 year old Danielle Bidgway was discovered at her house
in Gwendoline Terrace, Abercynon, South Wales, just before
8.30am.
Monday 16th
April 2007. Craig Bidgway, aged 37, was charged with
her murder.
Danielle Bidgway and her husband Craig had taken their two children
to the Disneyland Resort in Paris – but she then returned
to her lover Anthony Williams, Danielle was torn
between her desire to be with her children and her desire
to be with Anthony Williams.
Danielle
was spending Mondays, Wednesday and Fridays with Mr
Williams and the other nights of the week at home with her
husband and children.
During one
of her weekend stays Danielle made her husband an offer of
£40,000 to buy out his share of the house, Craig later
told police it was that which caused him to snap.
Craig
Bidgway strangled his wife Danielle and used a carrier bag
to suffocate her as she lay on the bed, Cardiff Crown
Court was told.
He then
went into the bedroom of their two-year-old son, he was
asleep when Bidgway put a plastic bag over his head and
tried to secure it. He did not succeed and stopped when
the boy woke up.
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23rd June 2008, Craig Bidgway denied murder and attempted murder. but
admitted a lesser charge of manslaughter of his wife and
attempted manslaughter of his son.
He told
previously police how, on the morning of 15th April he got on top of
her on the bed and put his hands around her throat.
Bidgway
admitted that he unlawfully killed his wife.
Peter
Murphy, prosecuting, said Bidgway had pleaded guilty to
manslaughter on the basis he did not intend to kill his
wife or cause her serious harm.
Bidgway was
said to have told officers: “She was struggling – then I
saw the carrier bag she used for her clothes to go back
and forth to his place. “She was struggling and was still
breathing and sucking in the air. “I thought: ‘Oh God,
what have I done.’ “I told her
I loved her and cuddled her but her arm just flopped down.
Her lips were all blue – she was gone.”
Prosecuting, Peter Murphy said Bidgway then telephoned his
mother and told her he had killed Danielle.
She went to
the house and called the police, who discovered him at the
side of the bed hugging his wife’s body.
29th June 2008, The jury
found Bidgway guilty on both counts after four hours
deliberation.
He appeared
in the dock for the verdicts despite spending most of the
trial in the cells. Bidgway was declared psychologically
unfit to give evidence at his trial after breaking down a
number of times in the dock.
Judge Mr
Justice Davis said: "He has got to confront what has
happened sooner or later. He can't carry on hiding. I say
that so he understands."
"It will be
a life sentence as laid down by law."
Bidgway was
ordered to serve a minimum of 14 years in prison.
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