When relationships TURN DEADLY

With 78 people killed by an intimate partner last year, a new crime series hopes to prevent future tragedies

- ASHLEIGH PAGE

In the UK last year 1.5 million incidents of domestic abuse were reported to the police and 78 people were killed by a current or ex-partner. New series #Dead2Me, starting this week on Crime + Investigation, uses interviews with family members and police investigations to tell the stories of victims and highlight the easily missed warning signs of relationships turning toxic. Manipulation, control, isolation – each of the murderers left a trail of red flags, easily dismissed by their partners and only knitted together after the heinous crimes were committed.

We speak to criminologist Dr Honor Doro Townshend from the series about the awful crimes featured, and how, by highlighting the red flags, future tragedies may be prevented.

HOUSE OF HORRORS

When loving mum-of-two Terri Harris met Damien Bendall online in April 2020, she had little knowledge of his criminal past.

Bendall had a history of violence and had spent time in prison, and it wasn’t long before Terri’s family became worried about his controlling behaviour and suspected drug use.

Then, on 17 September 2021, Terri’s daughter Lacey, 11, had her friend Connie Gent, 11, over for a sleepover. As the girls and Lacey’s brother John, 13, were getting ready for bed at around 9.40pm, Bendall, after a cocaine binge, began a savage attack. Killing 35-year-old Terri (who was pregnant at the time with his child) with a claw hammer, he then raped and murdered Lacey and bludgeoned Connie and John to death. He later phoned 999 and confessed.