Becky Watts

Rebecca Marie Watts (3 June 1998 – 19 February 2015) was a British student from Bristol who was murdered in 2015 at the age of 16. Both Matthews and Hoare were also convicted of conspiracy to kidnap, preventing the lawful burial of a body, perverting the course of justice and possession of two stun guns.

Disappearance Becky Watts was last seen at home at 18 Crown Hill in St George, Bristol, on the morning of 19 February 2015 by her step-mother Anjie Galsworthy. Suffering with multiple sclerosis, Galsworthy left the house at around 11:15 for a hospital appointment. Watts was reported missing at around 16:00 the following day.

Investigation On 22 February, Avon and Somerset Police made their first appeal for information about her disappearance, In addition, searches were made in nearby open spaces and park areas, as well as house to house inquiries. Searches were also organised by public volunteers in areas including in Wharf Road in Fishponds, Trym Valley and Badock's Wood. Police made a public appeal for information regarding the movements of a black Vauxhall Zafira between 19 and 23 February. On 28 February, Matthews and Hoare were arrested in connection with Watts's disappearance. The following day, Watts's dismembered body was found at a property in Barton Court, Barton Hill. On 4 March, Matthews was charged with murder. On 6 March, four other people who had been arrested were charged with assisting an offender, having been accused of helping to hide or dispose of Watts's body. A 23-year-old man who had also been arrested was released without charge.

On 22 June, Hoare, who was originally charged with perverting the course of justice, was charged with murder. Matthews and Hoare were also charged with conspiracy to kidnap, preventing the lawful burial of a body and possession of an illegal weapon. The couple were also charged with four unrelated counts of making indecent images of children. Matthews was also charged on unrelated counts of sexual assault and voyeurism.

Watts' funeral took place at St Ambrose Church in Whitehall, Bristol, on 17 April 2015 and was described by her family as "an occasion to celebrate Becky's life". The service was followed by a private interment for her family and friends at Avon View Cemetery.

Trial The murder trial began on 6 October 2015 at Bristol Crown Court. It was the prosecution's case that Watts was suffocated and, after her death, stabbed 15 times in her bedroom during a "sexually-motivated" kidnap plot carried out by Matthews and Hoare. According to the prosecution, after the killing, Matthews and Hoare put Watts's body into the boot of their car and stayed at the house for several more hours, during which time other family members arrived home. Matthews admitted killing Watts, but denied committing murder. He instead admitted manslaughter, telling the court that he had tried to kidnap his step-sister as a way of scaring her into changing what he perceived as her bad behaviour, but the plan went wrong and he accidentally killed her. Matthews insisted the killing took place while Hoare was in the garden, and that she was not involved. The prosecution claimed that the text messages between the two, as well as other content found at their home, suggested "a shared unnatural interest in attractive teenage females". DNA linked both Matthews and Hoare to items that were found in the shed alongside the remains, and an expert was called to give evidence who said it would be "easier" to carry out the dismemberment if more than one person was involved.

On 11 November 2015, after 3 hours and 27 minutes of deliberation, the jury found Matthews guilty of murder and Hoare guilty of manslaughter. Both were also convicted of conspiracy to kidnap, perverting the course of justice, preventing the lawful burial of a body and possession of two stun guns. Two men, James Ireland and Donovan Demetrius, were cleared of assisting an offender, which related to the moving and storing of packages containing Watts's remains. On 5 February 2016, Karl was sentenced to 2 years' imprisonment and Parsons was sentenced to 16 months' imprisonment.

On 13 November 2015, Justice Dingemans sentenced Matthews to life imprisonment with a minimum term of 33 years and Hoare to 17 years in prison. In his sentencing remarks, the judge agreed with the prosecution's belief that the planned kidnap was for a "sexual purpose", telling Matthews he had "a fixation with having sex with petite teenage girls" and that he believed Hoare had been "persuaded to participate in this fixation."

Aftermath A memorial bench for Watts is located in Goat's Field, Bristol. In February 2016, a wooden bench was unveiled in Watts's memory, located in Goat's Field, close to her home. The bench, carved by Andy O'Neill, was funded by the Neighbourhood Watch Partnership. A painted mural was also erected in memory of Watts in a park close to where she lived.

In March 2016, Watts's father, Darren Galsworthy, released a memoir which described his daughter's life, her murder and the subsequent criminal trial of those responsible. Titled Becky: The Heartbreaking Story of Becky Watts, the book was published by HarperCollins. It was later re-titled to The Evil Within when released in paperback.

Matthews and Hoare lodged appeals against their convictions and sentences, but on 23 June 2016, the Court of Appeal rejected their applications, saying that there was "no reasonable argument that the convictions are unsafe or that the sentences were wrong in principle or manifestly excessive".

Hoare was released on 1 September 2023, after serving half her sentence.