Tom Wilkinson

Farmer Christopher Wright, 73, was sentenced at Sheffield Crown Court to life in prison with a minimum term of 35 years for murdering Richard Dyson, dismembering him and concealing his remains in a concrete-filled barrel for six years. Dyson had lived in his car on Wright’s land in Hoyland, South Yorkshire, and the pair had fallen out over suspected theft. Wright’s childhood friend Karl Schwalbe was sentenced to three years for helping conceal the crime. The judge said Wright was likely to die in prison, while Dyson’s daughter described the anguish of being unable to grieve without knowing what had happened.

Alexandra Walker and her boyfriend Harrison Simpson were sentenced to life in prison at Teesside Crown Court for the murder and cruelty of Walker’s two-year-old daughter, Isabelle Rose Welsh. Simpson received a minimum term of 28 years and six months and Walker 22 years, less time already spent on remand. Isabelle suffered weeks of abuse, including 21 broken bones, a fatal head injury and sexual assault around the time of her death. The judge said the pair failed to obtain medical help, attempted to cover up the abuse and acted out of self-interest. Simpson was also convicted of sexual assault, while Walker was cleared of that charge.