Evil killer who pretended ex-girlfriend was still alive after he murdered her and dumped body in lay-by is jailed
A TWISTED boyfriend who pretended his ex was still alive after he murdered her and dumped her body in a lay-by has been jailed.
Darren Hall, 36, used Sarah Henshaw’s phone to text her friends and neighbours to say she had voluntarily left her home.
In reality, the mum-of-two was lying dead 20 miles away in a lay-by on the A617 near Chesterfield in Derbyshire.
Hall has now been jailed for life with a minimum of 17 years for murdering 31-year-old Sarah at her home in Ilkeston.
Sentencing, Mr Justice Goss said: “Sarah Henshaw was 31 years of age.
“She was a loud, outgoing and fun-loving person with an infectious laugh.
“The harm you have done and the suffering you have caused can never be undone by any sentence of this court.”
The couple met in 2011 but split six years later, Derby Crown Court was told.
They reunited last year but Hall was violent towards Sarah and the relationship was strained.
The horror unfolded on June 20 this year when Sarah told Hall to leave her home.
A loud bang was heard by neighbours shortly after but the killer tried to blame this on the pet dog having a fit.
He claimed he took his duvet, hopped in his van and drove around for an hour.
When he returned, he said there was a note from Sarah telling him she had gone to a pal’s house.
The monster told officers after his arrest he didn’t know where she was and that it was “their job” to find her.
But during his evidence, Hall changed his story and claimed Sarah had fallen down the stairs.
The killer said: “As I got to the top of the stairs, she goes to push me downstairs.
“I don’t think she was doing it to push me down the stairs, she has got her hand on my back saying, ‘Go on, get out’.
“I put my right hand out to brace myself and she pushed a bit harder, I swung my left arm back out at her and as I turned around she was already falling down the stairs.
“I just saw her fall head first. It was so quick, it was like I blinked and then she was at the bottom, it was so quick.
“She was not moving, she was just in a pile at the bottom of the stairs.”
Hall claimed he then “just panicked” after realising Sarah was dead and drove her body 20 miles away to the lay-by.
The carpet fitter stopped for nine minutes before dumping Sarah uncovered near some woodland.
He then messaged one of the mum’s pals before chucking her phone out the window of his work van as he drove back to Sarah’s home.
Once there, Hall messaged the device to “try and make out as if she had just left”.
How you can get help
Women's Aid has this advice for victims and their families:
- Always keep your phone nearby.
- Get in touch with charities for help, including the Women’s Aid live chat helpline and services such as SupportLine.
- If you are in danger, call 999.
- Familiarise yourself with the Silent Solution, reporting abuse without speaking down the phone, instead dialing “55”.
- Always keep some money on you, including change for a pay phone or bus fare.
- If you suspect your partner is about to attack you, try to go to a lower-risk area of the house – for example, where there is a way out and access to a telephone.
- Avoid the kitchen and garage, where there are likely to be knives or other weapons. Avoid rooms where you might become trapped, such as the bathroom, or where you might be shut into a cupboard or other small space.
If you are a victim of domestic abuse, SupportLine is open Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday from 6pm to 8pm on 01708 765200. The charity’s email support service is open weekdays and weekends during the crisis – messageinfo@supportline.org.uk.
Women’s Aid provides a live chat service – available weekdays from 8am-6pm and weekends 10am-6pm.
You can also call the freephone 24-hour National Domestic Abuse Helpline on 0808 2000 247.
He also disposed of her dressing gown and her slippers in a skip while “covering his tracks” through “calculated and controlled” actions.
Sarah was discovered six days later but a cause of death could not be found – although she had bruising on her neck.
DI Maria Pleace, who led the investigation, said: “Darren Hall is a manipulative, deceiving and dangerous individual.
“Only two people know what exactly happened that night. Sarah cannot tell us, and Hall refuses to give a factual account of the events.
“What we can be sure of is that Sarah’s life ended at his hand, that he dumped her body in the hope that she would never be found and then fabricated a story that Sarah had simply left.”