15 hours ago
1
[Warning: Potentially Triggering Content]
A man in England has been sentenced to a minimum of 27 years in prison after pleading guilty to brutally murdering his girlfriend in a 2021 attack.
On Monday, police in the county of Lincolnshire announced that 45-year-old Leigh Pateman will spend at least the next several decades behind bars following his guilty plea regarding the awful murder of his girlfriend Ellen Marshall. In that 2021 attack, he poured gasoline over Marshall’s body and then lit her on fire before fleeing to his mother’s house, where he was found covered in soot and burned over a large part of his body, too (as you can see in his booking photo from three years ago, above).
Marshall initially survived the attack, and Pateman was soon locked up on charges of causing grievous bodily harm to her. But following her death from pneumonia in March of 2023 — nearly two full years after the incident — prosecutors pushed for a murder charge against Pateman by successfully arguing in court that Marshall’s health declined specifically because of his attack two years prior. Earlier this year, he pled guilty to that murder charge, and now, he’s going away for a very long time.
Related: The Guy Who Confessed To JonBenét Ramsey’s Murder Is MISSING!
The initial incident occurred on April 22, 2021 during an argument between the couple. At one point, according to Lincolnshire cops, Pateman picked up a can of gasoline and doused it all over Marshall before igniting it with a lighter. When cops showed up on the scene, the fire was so large and burning so intensely that they didn’t even realize Marshall was the source of the flames. Per the BBC and others, they only finally realized the situation after hearing “a gurgling sound” coming from within the fire.
WTF…
In court following Pateman’s subsequent arrest, lead prosecutor Sarah Knight explained:
“There was little hair left on her head. Her face was so badly burnt and scorched it was difficult to make out her facial features. Her body was scorched where her clothes would have been.”
Miraculously, even though nearly 90 percent of Marshall’s body was covered with severe burns, she initially survived the attack. But the tragedy took its toll on her in other ways. Ellen’s daughter Paige Clarke read in court that her mother “could not bear to look at herself for a year” after Pateman’s attack. The grieving daughter continued:
“She became weaker and weaker as the days went by, but even then she was so strong of heart. The physical, mental and emotional pain that my mother had to go through is almost impossible to put into words.”
Pateman first pleaded guilty to the grievous bodily harm charges against him in 2022. But on March 11, 2023, Marshall died of pneumonia. After her death, Judge Simon Hirst slammed Pateman on the record by noting that Ellen’s death was directly caused by his attack two years prior:
“The cause of Ms Marshall’s death was pneumonia as a result of the injuries inflicted upon her by you. Ms. Marshall endured the most excruciating pain and suffering from the injuries you inflicted upon her.”
Earlier this year, Pateman offered a guilty plea on the updated murder charge. And now, he’s been sentenced for it. As we noted up top, his updated sentence on the murder bid holds a 27-year minimum term. Per the BBC, based on time served for his prior sentence, he will first be eligible for parole in 23.5 years.
Related: Texas Man Charged With Murder Found ‘Asleep On The Couch’ Next To Slain Sister & Niece
In a statement released to the media following Pateman’s sentencing on Monday, Lincolnshire Detective Inspector Andy McWatt said:
“This was a truly shocking and barbaric attack. I cannot begin to imagine how much fear she must have felt, and how painful the rest of Ellen’s life was. Her family had to watch someone they love suffer from terrible injuries for almost two years. I hope that they can feel some measure of closure that her killer has been sentenced for that crime.”
Indeed. We send our condolences to Marshall’s family, including her daughter, as well as her friends and loved ones. We can’t even begin to imagine what the last several years of her life were like.
If you or someone you know is experiencing domestic violence, help is available. Consider calling the National Domestic Violence Hotline at 800-799-7233, or text START to 88788, or go to https://www.thehotline.org/.
[Image via Lincolnshire Police]
English (US) ·