Craig Savage, aged 35 and a former member of the military, was convicted of the murder of his estranged wife Michelle Savage and her mother Heather Whitbread at their residence in East Sussex.
He fired six shots at Michelle after she refused to reconcile, and then shot Heather seven times, also killing their family dog, Zeus.
During the trial at Lewes Crown Court, Savage claimed that the shootings were accidental, alleging he tripped and the gun discharged during a struggle when he trespassed into the property on 16 March.
Nonetheless, evidence demonstrated that the shootings were intentional, leading the jury to find him guilty of murder.
He received a life sentence with a minimum term of 38 years.
It was also presented in court that Savage had previously stolen a semi-automatic rifle from a shooting range and had uploaded revenge pornography after separating from Michelle.
Sussex Police condemned the attack as 'horrendous' and expressed their hope that the verdict offers some measure of justice for the victims.
This is a probabilistic continent or country-group signal from public name datasets. It is not proof of nationality, ethnicity or personal background.
Likely region signal
UK
Country
from United Kingdom
- based on first name
52.9%
confidence
First-name region
UK
United Kingdom
52.9%
Surname region
UK
United States
43.5%
Court Outcome
Conviction and Sentencing Details
Sentenced
Detected legal outcome
that the shootings were intentional, leading the jury to find him guilty of murder. He received a life sentence with a minimum term of 38 years. It was also presented in court that Savage had previously stolen a semi-automatic rifle from...
Life or indeterminate sentence
38 years
He received a life sentence with a minimum term of 38 years
