Man gets life term for murder

Sharon Comerford’s sister says she feels ‘‘dead from the neck down’’ after her sibling’s brutal murder.

Her killer, Stephen Findlay, was sentenced to life imprisonment with a minimum of 11 years’ jail when he appeared before Justice Rachel Dunningham in the High Court at Dunedin yesterday morning.

‘‘A life was taken and it was a brutal murder,’’ the judge said.

Findlay, 60, suffered horrific facial injuries, including head injuries and the loss of his left eye, after turning a gun on himself in Truby King Reserve in the coastal Otago town of Seacliff.

He was found by a member of the public on the morning of March 8, 2016, after bludgeoning his Seacliff neighbour Comerford to death the night before.

Justice Dunningham said while there was a ‘‘high level of brutality’’ in the murder, she accepted there was some provocation and noted his own self-inflicted injuries.

Comerford’s Gold Coast-based sister Debi Ogle told the court of her anger at Findlay for the brutal death of her sister, who she had wanted to reconnect with.

‘‘Her horrific death has had a huge impact,’’ she said.

‘‘I feel dead from down.’’

Comerford’s twin, Jacqui Comerford, said she felt depressed, anxious, angry and sad about her sister’s death.

The visibly upset Christchurch woman told the court the pair the neck were so close they had their own language when growing up.

Her sister was talented, fun, artistic and compassionate person who loved animals and she had many happy memories of them.

She had moved to Dunedin to study art and in recent years had battled bipolar disorder and alcoholism.

Although the sisters were estranged in recent years, Comerford’s killing continued to affect Jacqui Comerford greatly.

She said it had cost her employment opportunities as she relived the horror.

Justice Dunningham praised the sisters for reading their victim impact statements in court.

Outside court, the women said they wanted their sister remembered as the ‘‘creative, talented, intelligent, funny, kind woman she was’’.

Comerford had taken steps to improve her life before she was ‘‘brutally taken from us’’, Ogle said.

Jacqui Comerford said she did not think a sentence of 11 years’ jail was long enough, but she was relieved the case was not going to trial.

The case was to be the subject of a three-week trial, but Findlay pleaded guilty at an October 10 appearance.

‘‘We have to just accept it, it’s the way the law is,’’ Jacqui Comerford said.

Detective Sergeant Stan Leishman said: ‘‘I’d like to thank Sharon’s family for their perseverance throughout this ordeal.

‘‘I hope today’s outcome will provide them with a sense of relief.’’