TEENAGER JAILED FOR MURDERING EX-GIRLFRIEND JEMMA BENSON
A Bournemouth teenager has been convicted at Winchester Crown Court of murdering his former girlfriend Jemma Benson...click the headline above to read the full story.
Matthew Keehan sexually assaulted the 22-year-old before strangling her and dumping her body in a dustbin at her home in West Borough, Wimborne.
Jemma's distraught mother Joan Benson made the macabre discovery during the early hours of May 22 last year.
Exactly a year ago to the day Jemma died, Keehan, of Charmin-ster, Bournemouth, pleaded guilty to her murder.
The 18-year-old, who was only 17 at the time of the offence, was jailed by Judge Michael Brodrick, who ordered reports be prepared before indicating how long he should serve.
He said: "You callously cut short the life of a bubbly, happy and attractive 22-year-old who had been your girlfriend.
"You added indignity to what you did with how you hid her body in circumstances which led to her widowed mother being person to the discovery." Prosecutor Jane Miller told the court that Jemma and Keehan had met while working at Domino's Pizza in Winton in 2001.
Their relationship lasted for a year before Jemma ended it.
Unable to accept the decision, Keehan initially made abusive telephone calls and then went around to see her to reconcile their differences.
At some point that day he became violent and murdered her, later confessing to a friend what he had done.
Meanwhile, Jemma was reported missing by her mother after failing to turn up for work.
Unable to sleep that night Mrs Benson eventually discovered her daughter at 5am.
In court defence barrister Stuart Jones said Keehan had no real recollection of what happened that day but accepted the evidence.
Mrs Benson, who was in court, issued a statement afterwards read by family liaison officer DC Chris Bickerstaffe.
It said: "Jemma was a loving, caring and affectionate daughter with a great sense of humour.
"I miss her every day.
She was young, vibrant, very popular and full of life with lots of dreams and plans.
"Jemma came from a large and loving family who have all been totally shocked and devastated that violence should have touched her in this horrifying way."
