Husband jailed for 22 years for Wakefield horror hammer murder of wife found in freezer
Judge satisfied he had planned sickening murder
A violent, sex-crazed husband who brutally murdered his wife in a hammer attack and stashed her remains in a chest freezer at home has been told he will serve at least 22 years in jail.
Evil David Barraclough delivered five blows with the hammer in the bedroom of their Horbury home in February as their children were present in the house.
He then tried to claim he was the victim of domestic abuse and had “finally snapped”.
But the 46-year-old was found to be a controlling and violent bully, that the killing of the mother-of-three was thought to be sexually motivated and that he had planned her death.
He had denied murder but changed his plea to guilty before the jury had been sworn in for his trial at Leeds Crown Court this week.
Barraclough had refused to come into court for his sentencing.
Facing a mandatory life sentence, Judge Andrew Stubbs KC told him he must serve at least 22 years and one month, minus his time spent on remand, before being considered for parole.
He said: “He showed a callous disregard for his wife, her children, his children and her friends.
“He spun a web of lies and deceit to explain his wife’s disappearance.
“I’m satisfied he used sustained and excessive violence.”
Barraclough walked into the police station in Normanton on March 5 telling them he had just tried to commit suicide and that he had killed his wife.
He told officers: “I should not have snapped, I should not have fought back. I have finally snapped back and look what I have done.”
Prosecutor Andrew Haslam KC said Barraclough was laying the foundations of painting himself as the victim, calling them “self-serving lies”.
It was thought Carolann, who was 37, died sometime between February 19 and 21 at the family home on Ken Churchill Drive in Horbury.
CCTV footage from outside the home showed Carolann alive for the last time shortly after 1pm on February 19.
When police finally found her body, she had fatal injuries to her head consistent with five blows from the hammer.
After the sickening murder, Barraclough then tried to cover his tracks. He even sent a message from Carolann’s phone to her friend, claiming she was not well and needed help.
Her friend was suspicious of the message from the outset.
Barraclough did a factory reset on her phone, and deleted all conversations with her on his own phone.
In the weeks that followed, Barraclough searched for sex workers and used Carolann’s bank card to withdraw hundreds of pounds.
Just a few pence were left in the accounts by the time he handed himself in at the police station.
During the investigation, it emerged that Carolann had confided in others that Barraclough controlled what she wore and her money.
It was heard that he “turned nasty” after drinking, calling Carolann names. Reports emerged that he would attack her and strangle her.
The court heard that had a tendency for violence, particularly while in drink, and there were previous allegations of sexual assaults on his wife.
She had previously confided in friends about his behaviour.
Mitigating, Sean Larkin KC said Barraclough accepted the serious nature of hs crime, but claimed it was a spur-of-the moment attack following an argument between him and Carolann.
He said: “He fully accepts he killed her with the hammer and behaved in a reprehensible fashion.”