Man murdered partner and set fire to body

Jul 3 2009 By Steve Bax

A Woking man who murdered the mother of his children and attempted to cover-up the killing by setting fire to her body has been convicted at the Old Bailey this afternoon.

Alan Jermey, 41, a car sales manager of Greenmeads, Woking, had lived with 34-year-old Kirsty Wilson for nine years and the couple had two girls – now aged eight and three – who have lived with relatives since the murder.

On August 26 last year Jermey made a 999 call to Surrey Fire and Rescue Service from the family home. He was with his daughters but took more than two minutes to mention Kirsty, who worked as a marketing manager for another car dealership, was also in the house.

He claimed not to know where she was because he had gone to bed early while she stayed downstairs watching television.

When firefighters entered the house they found Kirsty dead and her body was badly burned, but the fire had not taken hold as much as Jermey had expected or claimed in the 999 call. It was clear he had made no attempts to find her.

Fire investigators later found the seat of fire in the living room, where Kirsty’s body had been arranged to look like she was watching TV. But rather than this being an accident, petrol had been poured over her body. A burnt petrol can found in the downstairs cloakroom confirmed this.

A post mortem found that Kirsty was already dead when the fire had started, as there was no smoke in her lungs. The burns on her body had failed to conceal bruising to her neck consistent with being strangled.

Police arrived shortly after the fire service and commenced an investigation. There were no signs of forced entry and valuables had been left lying on worktops, suggesting that no one had broken into the house and these were not the actions of a burglar. At 3:14am that morning – less than four hours since he had dialled 999 – Jermey was arrested.

After his arrest, detectives uncovered the motive behind the murder. Kirsty had fallen in love with Simon Goddard, a man she worked with. Unhappy in her relationship, she told Jermey she was leaving to start a new life with Simon.

In the months before Kirsty’s death, the couple remained living together while financial matters and custody arrangements for their children were resolved. During this time, Jermey wrote pleading letters to Kirsty, but unable to deal with their imminent break-up, he ultimately decided to take her life.

Commenting on the case, Senior Investigating Officer Detective Inspector Paul Monk said: "Kirsty Wilson and Alan Jermey had slowly grown apart over their nine years together. When Kirsty found someone new who made her happy again, she built up her confidence to tell Jermey she was leaving him.

"Jermey was consumed with jealousy and rage. He violently murdered the mother of his children and set fire to her, hoping that their family home would go up in flames and crudely cover-up the killing.

"Alan Jermey may have perversely believed that by taking Kirsty’s life he could ignore the collapse of their relationship and retain full custody of their children. In fact, his wicked act has deprived two young girls of both their parents.

"It will no doubt take years for them to come to terms with what has happened, but I hope this guilty verdict provides some strength and support during this difficult journey. These girls – and the rest of Kirsty’s family – are at the centre of our thoughts today."

Alan Jermey will be sentenced at the Old Bailey on Monday July 6.

Parents speak out - see page 2