Man Sentenced To Life In Prison For Brutal Murder Of Ex-Girlfriend, Stabbed 80 Times ‘Til Knife Bent

An Essex man who stabbed his ex-girlfriend to death in a fit of jealous rage has been sentenced to life in prison. The woman, a horse groomer at the Essex Horse and Pony Protection Society, was brutally and viciously stabbed a total of 80 times on the grounds of her workplace, after she ended her relationship with her would be killer. Eighteen of the stabs delivered were to her face.

Jordan Taylor was sentenced to a minimum of 23 years in prison for the murder of 21-year-old Laura Davies, though he attempted to deny the charges. The two had been together since December 2014 and Taylor had even moved into the flat provided to the woman because of her job as a horse trainer. Jordan was a martial arts enthusiast and displayed many jealous and controlling tendencies, the couple would often argue, even about the types of clothes Laura was allowed to wear. Friends revealed that Laura had grown tired of Jordan Taylor’s jealousy and intended to end her relationship to him on the night of July 3, which is the night he ended her life.

Laura Davies’s ex-boyfriend Jordan Taylor ‘stabbed her over 80 times after split' https://t.co/ilyLUoUSB2 #uk pic.twitter.com/WR017JsHbL

— London News Now (@londonnewsnow) January 5, 2016

According to Buzzfeed News, Taylor, 22, stated that everything became a blur to him after he initially stabbed Davies twice in her stomach out of self defence when she attacked first by kicking and punching him. The prosecutors outlined the events that led to Laura Davies death and painted a condemning image of Taylor during the eight day trial at Chelmsford Crown Court, which began on Tuesday, January 5 and jurors were also shown shocking CCTV footage of the brutal and callous murder. Upon sentencing, the Judge Charles Gratwick stated that the nature of the attack caused Laura to suffer tremendously before she died, calling Taylor “devious.”

“The jury saw through your lies, and saw you for what you are – a devious, jealous and ruthless individual prepared to unleash extreme violence on anyone who crosses your path. This was a brutal and sick, callous killing.”

On the night in question, Laura Davies had made diner for both herself and Jordan Taylor and though she intended to end the relationship she was also going to allow him to continue to live with her so he would not be homeless. Plates of uneaten food were discovered still in the home and lead to the suggestion that things between them escalated quickly. The attack begun in the kitchen and though Taylor claimed the first two stabs he gave Laura were self defence he had no explanation as to why he then chased her outside, in her pyjamas, and continued to stab her with the kitchen knife. BBC News wrote that “disfiguring” cuts were made to her face and her left breast during the murder and as he viciously stabbed her a total of 80 times, the kitchen knife bent to a 45 degree angle. The CCTV footage shows the jealous and controlling Taylor hoisting Laura’s body into the bushes at the end of his attack as he tried to conceal her body and then used a bucket to hide the blood.

https://twitter.com/EssexPoliceUK/status/687997416222666753

Police were alerted to the brutal attack at the horse sanctuary when someone contacted them to report that say he had just seen a woman getting stabbed and a man covered in blood standing over what appeared to be her lifeless body. The police found Taylor crouching next to his bloody and wounded ex-girlfriend in the bushes. Shockingly, the young woman was still alive but died that night in Basildon Hospital.

One of the things that helped to seal Jordan Taylor’s imprisonment was his utter lack of remorse throughout the entire trial. He accepted that he had killed Davies, but tried to deny the charge of murder by claiming that he was not of sound mind at the time. A Forensic Psychiatrist reported that during their interview he showed no emotion and smiled at inappropriate times when they were discussing the death of Laura Davies.

Remembering Laura Davies and thinking of our friends @EssexHorsePony today. pic.twitter.com/ettBBi8tTf

— #HorseHour (@HorseHour) January 14, 2016

After the sentence was delivered, Laura Davies’ family spoke to the media about the justice that had been served. John Davies had described his daughter to The Enquirer as an “amazing person” who will be greatly missed and never forgotten.

“We’ve lost Laura forever and it’s very hard to deal with. We thank the justice system for all their work and for the sentence, but we repeat, it still never brings our beautiful Laura back.”