18 August 2023 , 15:17
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A dad who stabbed his half-naked wife to death in their kitchen whilst on drugs he bought off the dark web has been jailed for life, with a minimum term of 18 years.
Conrad Iyayi changed his plea to guilty on day two of a bombshell court trial and finally admitted murdering schoolteacher and mum-of-three, Katy Harris. She was killed in the kitchen of their Derby property in what the prosecution called “a brutal and needless killing” in February, 2022.
Iyayi, 46, had already admitted manslaughter, but eventually admitted to murdering his wife, by stabbing her seven times in the chest. Thanking the jury for their service, Judge Shaun Smith KC said: “It is difficult for a defendant to come to the decision they have done something as large as committing an offence of murder, which you would have been told involves an intention to kill. Sometimes it takes a while to come to terms with what you have done.”
Tributes to the teacher left at her home in Derby (Callum Parke)Ms Harris, a teacher at St Clare’s School in Mickleover, was described as “loving, compassionate, forgiving, loyal and creative” by her children in a statement released last year. In a joint tribute, released on what would have been Ms Harris’s 53rd birthday on March 1 last year, her children Alexa, then 28, Phoebe, then 23 and Theo, then 11, said: “She was an advocate for young people and believed in everyone’s potential, always encouraging them to be their best selves.
“She was incredibly supportive and efficient and she dedicated her life to her children. The loss of our mother is the most sudden and tragic event we will experience in our lives. Although a victim in this circumstance, our mother was not a victim in life. Katy was a fearless woman, she spoke her mind and stood up for herself and others. The pain we feel now our mother has been taken from us is indescribable, however, we will move forward as a family with the spirit of our mum with us forever.”
Double killer who slit girlfriend's throat within weeks of release jailed
Earlier in the trial, prosecutor Gordon Aspden told the court how Iyayi had used three kitchen knives to attack his wife after watching Match Of The Day with their young son last year, adding: "At the time of the murder, the couple's 11-year-old son, Theo, was asleep in his bedroom upstairs, but mercifully it does not appear he was disturbed by what his father was doing to his mother elsewhere in the house."
Iyayi called police at around 7.30am the next day, telling the operator: "I think my wife might be dead, I'm not saying anything, I just want a solicitor." In a statement made during interview, he said he'd taken methadone bought from the "dark web" prior to the murder.
He claimed the substance had an unanticipated effect, which led him to believe he had taken a "mind-altering" hallucinogenic and had murdered his wife in a dream, only to discover her body hours later. Tests showed Iyayi had taken prescription methadone, as well as prescribed anti-depressants and painkillers, rather than an unknown substance as he had claimed.
Mr Aspden added: "He [Iyayi] made a number of unsolicited comments concerning Katy's death. He said it all felt like a dream and the situation, in his words, was 'crazy'. His demeanour was remarkably calm and controlled given the dreadful circumstances of what had happened."
In a victim impact statement read by Mr Aspden, the couple's son Theo said he felt "betrayed" by the defendant and had struggled at school as a result of the murder, adding: "He is not my father and I want nothing to do with him again."
Ms Harris' grown-up daughters Phoebe and Alexa described Iyayi as sinister, sadistic and manipulative in a joint statement. The pair said: We don't feel anything towards him. We are numb. We don't see him as a human being as anyone with any humanity could not take someone else's life in the way he did.
"He is sinister, sadistic and manipulative. We feel betrayed. We cannot comprehend how one person has affected so many people's lives. Our mum was the light in the lives of so many people, whereas he encapsulates darkness."
Sentencing Ayayi to life, with a minimum of 18 years, Judge Smith KC said: "It was a brutal, frenzied killing and a needless death. In truth, only two people know what happened.
"Kathryn is dead and you have never really revealed the full truth, although there is a strong suggestion that drugs and alcohol played a role in what happened. Whatever happened, she did not need to lose her life. She was entitled at the very least to be safe in her home."