Innocent man was charged with murder of girlfriend Police defend arrest after jealous former lover later found guilty
POLICE have defended their decision to charge a tragic mother’s boyfriend with her murder after the real killer was jailed for life.
Innocent Trevor Tyndale was originally charged with killing Wendy Mann, only for detectives to later discover that she was strangled by brutal Leroy Sterling, the father of her three children.
Jealous Sterling, 62, had earlier tried to stab Mr Tyndale after discovering the couple were in a relationship.
But, in a statement issued after Sterling was jailed, the Crown Prosecution Service said Mr Tyndale tried to cover up the attack and told police he had been hurt in a street attack.
Sterling, of Guns Lane, West Bromwich, was not arrested in connection with the murder until November 13, 2015 – more than two months after Ms Mann was found dead at her flat in the town.
Defending the West Midlands Police investigation, Detective Inspector Martin Slevin, who led the hunt for Ms Mann’s killer, said: “We followed the evidence and Trevor Tyndale spent the night before Wendy’s death with her. All the phone data and CCTV evidence available at that early period pointed to Trevor Tyndale being a person who could have been responsible for Wendy’s death.”
Sterling denied killing Ms Mann and scrubbed her apartment clean in a bid to cover his tracks, but stepped on a newly-mopped floor – his dried footprints led to his downfall.
He was found guilty of murder and attempted murder at Wolverhampton Crown Court and will serve at least 21 years in prison before being considered for release.
After the sentencing, police released CCTV footage showing a figure appearing to emerge from Ster- ling’s home, heading in the direction of Ms Mann’s flat in Chapel Street.
David Parsons, senior crown prosecutor from West Midlands CPS, said: “When Leroy Sterling became aware that Wendy Mann had formed a new relationship, jealously and rage took hold of him. He first brutally attacked the man she had formed the new relationship with and, a month later, he violently attacked and killed Ms Mann in her own home.
“Throughout this prosecution the defendant has shown no remorse for his crimes. He has been found guilty and must now face the consequences of his actions. Our thoughts are with the family and friends of Ms Mann.”