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FACTFILE
Peter Foster &
Heather Cooper, both police officers, shared a house in
West Street, Haslemere, with their 2 young children.
Sunday 16th
October 2011,
Heather was on maternity leave having given birth to a
daughter several weeks previously.
On this day,
Foster who was known to have a terrible temper, exploded
in rage after an argument about a baby bag.
The couple had
gone to Church for the Christening of a friends
grandchild, They argued and sat with their backs to each
other. After the service they left without going to the
party, and went home.
He attacked
his partner, in front of the 2 young children, Joshua
was 4 years old at the time, with a baseball bat hitting
her around the head up to 10 times, he then stabbed her
in the throat.
He then drove
the children to his grandmothers house, before returning
home to clean up,. He then drove to nearby woods where
he buried her body.
Foster
confided in his cousin, who then alerted the police.
Police arrived
at the grandmothers house, where Foster said "you
should arrest me", when asked what for, he replied "murder".
Later that
evening Foster led police to the site where he had
buried his partner.
Ms Cooper's
body was found buried in a shallow grave in Blackdown
Woods, near Lurgashall, West Sussex.
A post-mortem
at the Royal Surrey County Hospital found that Ms Cooper
had died from blunt force trauma to the head and from
a stab wound to the throat.
Tuesday
26th June 2012, Foster pleaded guilty at Lewes Crown
Court. Initially he pleaded not guilty, but changed his
plea in court.
His defence
team clasimed mitigatig circumstances, saying that
Fosters father hads been shot dead ion 2009, this led
foster to drink, h was found drink driving and this
forced him to leace the plioce sevice, his life was
spieralling out of control.
Sentencing
Foster, Judge Richard Brown described him as an "extremely
dangerous individual" who may never be safe to be
released from prison.
He added: "This was a wicked, savage and senseless
attack on a young mother in her own home.
Not only have you taken her life, you have also deprived
Joshua and Isabel of a loving mother and, no doubt,
devastated her family and friends."
The judge added that aggravating factors were that the
attack was carried out in front of the couple's
children, that the defendant was trained in martial
arts, and the ferocity of the attack which involved two
weapons.
Foster was
sentenced to life imprisonment with a recommendation he
serve at least 17 years behind bars.
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