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Husband Jailed for Life After Staging Wife's Suicide
14 Jul
Summary
- Michael Thompson received a life sentence with a 33-year minimum.
- He murdered his estranged wife and staged her death as suicide.
- Thompson refused to attend his sentencing hearing in court.
Michael Thompson, 55, has been sentenced to life imprisonment with a minimum term of 33 years for the rape and murder of his estranged wife, Kimberley Thompson. The court heard that Thompson, who was divorcing Ms. Thompson and had made hundreds of recordings of her, suffocated her at their shared Northampton home in the early hours of August 9. He then staged the scene to resemble a suicide by scattering pill packets, alcohol, and photographs around her body.
Thompson deliberately absented himself from his sentencing hearing at Nottingham Crown Court, a decision Judge Nirmal Shant KC described as "the ultimate act of cowardice and contempt." The jury unanimously found Thompson guilty of rape, murder, and two counts of perverting the course of justice after a seven-week trial. A post-mortem examination revealed no evidence of significant alcohol consumption by Ms. Thompson.
