In a dramatic turn of events a Southport man who killed his girl friend today (Mon) admitted murdering her.
Ian Gordon had been on trial for four days but this morning before the prosecution continued with their case against him he changed his plea to guilty to murdering Anne Marie Cropper. He had previously admitted manslaughter but that was not accepted by the Crown.
The 47-year-old victim was found dead in her flat in Royal Terrace, Southport, on September 10 last year having suffered exactly 100 recent external marks or injuries to her head and body.
After Gordon, 52, changed his plea the jury of eight women and four men formally returned a guilty verdict.
Gordon, of Royal Terrace, was further remanded in custody to await sentence tomorrow.
During the trial at the jury heard that when ambulance staff arrived at the victim’s flat they were met by Gordon who said she had fallen in the shower and claimed he found her on the floor.
Paramedics discovered Ms Cropper lying between two rooms in the flat, naked except for a towel. A post-mortem examination found she suffered most of the injuries or marks to her head and neck, with others to her chest, abdomen, back, torso, arms, legs and private parts.
Nigel Power, QC, prosecuting, said that the pathologist found evidence of repetitive blows and impacts to the head, gripping around the jawline and trauma to the chest wall. There was also evidence of gripping and handling of limbs.
“The majority of the key injuries had features entirely consistent with having been inflicted within the hours leading up to her death. She died from a combination of blunt head and chest wall injuries,” he said.
The court heard from the victim’s four children how they had seen her with injuries after she started seeing Gordon about ten weeks before her death and she had told a doctor that he would attack her and threaten to kill her.
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