Man who murdered wife of 50 years in 'terrifying and sustained attack' jailed for life

A 79-year-old man who stabbed his wife of 50 years to death in bed after subjecting her to years of domestic violence has been jailed for life.

Michael Pyke, a former hairdresser, "expects to die in prison" after murdering Beryl Pyke at their home in Aldwick, West Sussex, in May this year.

Hove Crown Court heard on Friday that Pyke was a "happy family man" with no previous convictions until he turned 60 and began offending, doing several stints in prison for multiple convictions, many relating to domestic violence against Ms Pyke.

The father of two was sentenced yesterday to life imprisonment with a minimum term of 15 years in custody for her murder.

The court heard how Pyke confessed to his cousin that he murdered his wife, telling him he went into her separate bedroom and asked for a cuddle, but she told him to “f**k off out of my bedroom”.

The father of two then armed himself with a small kitchen knife and stabbed her multiple times when she was in bed.

They had spent the evening at a friend’s house together on the night of Saturday, May 30, and the murder took place between around 10.30pm that evening and 2pm on May 31, when the police attended their home, the court heard.

Pyke, who drank a litre of vodka and cider a day, called his cousin Roger Taylor and told him what happened the following morning, and Mr Taylor in turn called the police.

Police officers arrived to find Pyke calm with a TV on downstairs, and they discovered Ms Pyke in bed in her nightgown, covered in blood.

Prosecutor Pippa McAtasney KC told the court Pyke had 47 convictions for 80 offences between 2008 and 2022.

These included 13 for violence against the person, five for assaults on emergency workers and 26 for harassment and breaches of restraining orders to protect Ms Pyke from him.

He had also served a number of stints in prison, the longest for 10 months in 2008 for stabbing a friend and neighbour who walked Ms Pyke home in July 2007, after she had gone to their house to avoid her husband’s drinking.

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Following his arrest, his comments were captured on body-worn camera footage, including "F**k this life, I want to die" and "Dead forever, dead forever, thank f*****g god for that".

Crime scene investigators found the property very clean and indications that Pyke had showered after the killing and cleaned up the scene.

A polo shirt was in the laundry basket and black trousers with visible blood stains were downstairs.

A blood-stained knife was found in his bedroom, which appeared likely to be the murder weapon.

A post-mortem examination found 11 stab wounds and defensive injuries which showed Ms Pyke anticipated a blow from the knife, measured at 8cm in length.

The couple’s son sat in court with his wife, who did not make victim impact statements.

Instead, it was heard that “they cannot put into words the impact this had on the family” and they will say what they have to say in private.

Pyke pleaded guilty to his wife’s murder on October 19 at Brighton Crown Court.

Defending Pyke, Martin Rutherford KC said a "really bizarre" feature is that throughout his adult life until turning 60 he was a "happy family man with no previous convictions recorded against him".

He told the court: "Matters turned post-60, largely chronicled in the criminal record. Woven within that, a tale of homelessness interspersed with destructive and self-destructive periods of time living with his wife."

Another relevant factor in the case, Mr Rutherford said, was that Pyke was a long-term "teetotaller" who became attracted and "perhaps addicted to alcohol".

He said: "The reality is this afternoon Mr Pyke knows he is to receive a life sentence and he expects to die in prison."

Sentencing him, Judge Jeremy Gold KC described it as a "terrifying and sustained attack on your defenceless wife".

He said Pyke had not tried to explain or excuse his actions, which must be seen in the context of his 50-year marriage to Ms Pyke, with the last decades "marked by regular incidents of domestic abuse and violence" towards her.

The judge said: "I have no doubt from the number of times you stabbed Beryl it was your intention to kill her and you did so showing no mercy."

Following the sentencing, Sussex Police Detective Sergeant Elliott Lander said Pyke "cruelly" took Ms Pyke’s life in the home they shared.

DS Lander said: "While in police custody, he made a number of comments which indicated his responsibility for what had happened, showing no remorse and a nonchalant attitude towards the devastating consequences of his actions."