EVIL, EVIL MONSTER TOOK MY BEAUTIFUL DAUGHTER
THE mother of an “executed” travel agent rounded on her daughter’s crazed killer in court yesterday, branding him “the most evil monster walking the Earth”.
Andrew Burke, 31, strolled into the TUI store where Cassie Hayes, 28, worked and slit her throat in front of horrified onlookers after the mother-of-one began a relationship with his former lover, Laura Williams, 29.
Liverpool Crown Court heard that the day before the killing on January 13, Burke was convicted of harassing Ms Williams.
Yesterday, tattooed Burke admitted carrying out the cold-blooded public murder in Southport, Merseyside, in an act of revenge to spite Ms Williams.
In a moving victim impact statement from the witness box, grieving mother Tracy Hayes told Burke: “You took the most precious gift I ever had in my life, my beautiful daughter, my baby.
“You do not deserve to breathe fresh air again. I hope you rot in hell, you evil coward of a man.”
Mrs Hayes, of Alnwick, Northumberland, left the witness stand to applause from her family, who were wearing yellow badges – Cassie’s favourite colour.
Jailing Burke for life with a minimum term of 26 years, Judge David Aubrey told him: “In my judgment, the killing was an act of unspeakable savagery.
“The events of January 13th, when you must have known there would be many customers in the travel agents, were captured on CCTV. The description of that footage is so brutal and harrowing, I order it must never be released to the public.
“You perpetrated a cold-blooded execution in public for the purpose of revenge.
“You planned everything you were about to do. You had bought a knife specifically for the purpose of killing your victim.
“Then in front of everyone you went behind the deceased, lifted her head, and ran the knife forcefully across her throat. This was a cowardly act of revenge designed to kill and did kill a totally innocent person in broad daylight in front of so many,” Judge Aubrey said.
Commenting on the Hayes family’s shattering loss, the judge added: “They all speak of their unbearable pain and emptiness. Now the family of a lovely, caring woman have to live with the agonising loss and living nightmare of your evil crime.”
Burke, of St Helens, Merseyside, pleaded guilty to murder and having an offensive weapon, a knife, in a public place.
David McLachlan QC, defending, said Burke moved to Southport in 2012 and began a relationship with Ms Williams, who became pregnant.
When their daughter was born, Burke was “the happiest” his family had ever seen him, but when the relationship foundered, he took two overdoses in despair.
In a statement, his sister Sarah Burke said: “He found out that Laura was with Cassie Hayes and he took that very, very badly. He became obsessed with Laura and trying to get her back. And he became obsessed with the woman who he believed had taken Laura from him, Cassie Hayes.”
Gordon Cole QC, prosecuting, said police were aware of Burke’s campaign against Ms Hayes and last May he was issued with a harassment warning.
In November, he was charged with harassing Ms Williams, convicted on
January 12 at Sefton magistrates court and bailed ahead of sentencing.
That afternoon, the court heard, Burke told his sister: “I’ll go to Wilkinson’s, buy the biggest knife I can find and slit Cassie’s throat.” Ms Burke dismissed the comments as childish and told him to go home.
But the next morning, Burke posted a social media message #toolate, with the words: “The lock on their cage in my mind is rattling.
“They’re reaching through the bars. I don’t know if I’m strong enough to stop them again.”
In the afternoon he entered the Tui branch to attack Ms Hayes, who had been serving a family, the court heard.
He told a cashier, “I just want to apologise for what I am about to do” and was then seen to lower his hood before walking behind Ms Hayes and placing his arms behind her head. “He lifted her head, exposing her neck with his left arm and then ran his right hand across her throat,” Mr Cole said.
“It was immediately apparent that there was blood flowing and that Cassie Hayes had had her throat cut. After this ruthless and chilling murder the defendant seemed to remain calm. He showed no emotion and remained seated whilst everybody else was reacting in one way or another to what had happened.”
Ms Hayes died later in hospital, despite the efforts of emergency service crews who rushed to the scene.
Police arrived at the scene and found Burke lying on the floor in the centre of the shop, the court was told.
He told a firearms officer: “I’m no threat to you, officer. I’ve got nothing else on me. The knife’s on the table.
“Can you tell the family that was in here I’m sorry, I thought I’d waited till there were no kids in there.
“I was in court yesterday and I lost. It was either kill me or kill her, so I killed her.”
When Burke was arrested on suspicion of murder and cautioned, he replied casually: “Has she died?,” the court was told.
Customer Debora-Jayne McCafferty told the court: “My husband, my daughter and I were sat opposite Cassie. What we saw was absolutely horrifying and deeply traumatic.”