Heartbroken dad tells of moment he found daughter stabbed to death by possessive lover – as beast is jailed for life
A HEARTBROKEN dad who found his daughter stabbed to death by a possessive monster said he still sees her body in his dreams.
Clair Ablewhite, 47, was killed at her cottage in Colston Bassett, Nottinghamshire, by John Jessop, 26, after breaking off their romance.
Distraught dad Graham Tinkley, 75, found the body of dogwalker Clair, in her new £450,000 home last February.
The mum-of-three had begun seeing Jessop following the breakdown of her marriage of 28 years.
He cycled 17 miles to her home – which she had only lived in a month – late at night and he launched a “persistent and brutal” attack on the night of February 25 last year.
She suffered knife wounds to the neck and chest, as well as a series of blunt force and defensive injuries.
Brave father Graham desperately battled to save his daughter’s life after he discovered her, while at the same time Jessop was said to have been out drinking with friends.
The shocking discovery triggered a police probe and a long-running saga which ended this week with Jessop being jailed for life at Nottinghamshire Crown Court.
And Graham admitted that he still gets nightmares and struggles to sleep after the harrowing ordeal.
Mr Tinkley, who found his daughter lying by the fireplace still in her pyjamas, told the court: “To this day I wake up in the night; panic attacks. I see Clair in my dreams.
“I see blood gushing from her throat trying to resuscitate her dead body.”
He was also dealt fresh heartbreak after his wife, Sandra, was diagnosed with cancer following the tragedy.
Graham said: “It was absolutely terrible. It is all still a nightmare. We are thinking about it all the time, we cannot even go for a walk.
“Our lives have been destroyed. My wife got cancer since that happened, because she smoked so many cigarettes to cope with it all.”
He added: “Clair moved to the new place because she wanted a new start in life after her divorce. She was very popular and loved, and there were over 400 people who attended her funeral.”
Jessop, who met his lover on the Facebook Dating website in September 2021, was arrested 11 days after the killing following a manhunt.
A court heard that three days earlier, he had told friends while having drinks: “I’m on borrowed time. This could be my last night out.”
Jessop pleaded guilty to murder at a previous hearing and was sentenced on Wednesday.
The cold-hearted killer was jailed for life with a minimum term of 17 years and eight months.
Jessop was identified as a suspect through CCTV provided by a neighbour of Ms Ablewhite, who ran a dog-walking business from her home in Hall Lane.
Officers said the victim had been using a dating website and had communicated with Jessop via social media and WhatsApp.