Man, 79, jailed for life for stabbing wife 11 times in Aldwick home
Michael Pyke, 79, has been sentenced to life in prison for murdering his 84-year-old wife Beryl at their home near Bognor Regis. He must serve a minimum of 15 years.
Aldwick man, 79, sentenced to life for murdering wife of 50 years
Michael Pyke, 79, was handed a life sentence at Lewes Crown Court on Tuesday after pleading guilty to the murder of his wife, Beryl Pyke, 84, at their home in Langley Grove, Aldwick, near Bognor Regis. The minimum term was set at 15 years.
According to The Argus, Pyke stabbed Beryl 11 times on the night of 31 May in a violent attack that left blood splatter throughout the property.
His Honour Judge Jeremy Gold KC told Pyke: "You have not tried to either explain or excuse your actions. I have no doubt it was your intention to kill her and you did so showing no mercy."
A post-mortem examination found Mrs Pyke had sustained multiple stab wounds to her abdomen, arms, and scalp. The fatal wound punctured the sac around her heart.
After the attack, Pyke showered, then brought his wife's blood-stained mobile phone downstairs. He telephoned his cousin Roger Taylor, a retired police officer living in Essex, and said: "Sorry to burden you with this — I've murdered Beryl. I went out of her bedroom and went downstairs and got a knife."
When Taylor asked whether he was certain she was dead, Pyke replied: "It was last night, she hasn't moved. I'm going down now to have a bloody good drink."
Taylor immediately called 999. When officers arrived, they found Pyke watching television and drinking. He complained of a bad back and later told police his handcuffs were too tight.
Prosecuting counsel Pippa McAtasney KC told the court that Pyke showed no remorse. The court also heard that Mrs Pyke had endured decades of domestic abuse during their marriage. Although the couple had separated, they continued to live under the same roof, where Pyke regularly subjected her to violence.
Mrs Pyke had repeatedly asked for restraining orders against her husband to be lifted, reportedly out of concern that he would otherwise have nowhere to live.
In 2007, Pyke was jailed for 10 months after stabbing a neighbour who attempted to intervene during one of his attacks on Mrs Pyke. He had 47 previous convictions for 18 offences, including 13 for violence and several for carrying knives in public.
Defending, Martin Rutherford KC said Pyke's life had deteriorated sharply after he stopped working at the age of 60. "He was a happy family man until turning 60," Rutherford said. "It is a tale of homelessness, interspersed with destructive and self-destructive periods of time living with his wife." Pyke, described as a long-term teetotaller, later became addicted to alcohol and reportedly consumed a litre of vodka and cider daily. Rutherford added: "He expects to die in prison."
The couple had two adult children. Their son Craig said the impact of his mother's murder was impossible to put into words.
Pyke, who left school at 14 and worked as a hairdresser until retirement, pleaded guilty to murder on 19 October.
Source: The Argus