The family of a murdered mum have been praised by a judge after they were forced to listen to the "remorseless" killer's lies in court.
Russell Norman James Marsh, of Shotton, Flintshire, was found guilty of murdering his estranged wife and the mother of his four children, Jade March - often known as Jade Ward - during the summer of 2021. Jurors at Mold Crown Court hears how Ward was slashed, stabbed and strangled in the box room of her own home.
Her mutilated body was buried under a pile clothes by the heartless murderer. During the trial, Marsh accepted that his unlawful actions directly resulted in her death by asphyciation. He admitted to police that he had "done something terrible" but still maintained that he was innocent of her murder, North Wales Live reports.
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Marsh had claimed during the proceedings that a "white noise" had come over him in the moments before her death, turning into a blackout - allegedly when he came to, he found her dead. He also claimed in the trial that Ward had wanted to force him into suicide for life insurance.
Despite Marsh's claims, the jury only took a few hours to find him guilty of his estranged wife's muder. Members of Ms Ward's family and friends leaned over the public gallery to thank the jury following the result.
After the verdict was delivered by the foreman of the jury, Judge Rhys Rowlands told the court Ms Ward had suffered a "brutal" attack at the hands of her "jealous" ex-husband, making her pay the ultimate price for "moving on" after their relationship broke down.
Addressing Marsh, Judge Rowlands said: "I watched you throughout this trial and you haven't shown the slightest bit of remorse. There can only be one sentence for murder and that is of life imprisonment."
He also praised the friends and family of Ms Ward for their "remarkable" restraint after listening to "falsehoods and slurs" towards Ms Ward during the trial, "it can't have been easy for them," the judge said. Marsh will be sentenced in Mold Crown Court next week for the murder.
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