Husband killed and cut up wife for accidentally defrosting chips
A husbAnd murdered his wife and dismembered her body after she accidentally defrosted a £3 bag of chips.
Thomas McCann, 49, flew into a rage and strangled Yvonne, 46, his wife of 24 years, in the bathroom, a court heard yesterday.
McCann, a lorry and delivery driver, cut up the body and dumped his wife’s remains in eight plastic bags at a country park and a recycling centre. In a bid to cover his crime, he sent a text to his wife’s mobile phone saying: ‘Missing you so much, I hope we can sort this out, forgive me I don’t want to lose you.’
he also used her phone to send messages to their three children, pretending to be her and detailing the row over the frozen chips, which had to be thrown away.
Manchester Crown Court heard that one he sent to their daughter Rachel Lawson read: ‘I was planning on ending it with your dad this weekend until your dad p***ed me off over chips. I should not have left the chips out. It’s only £3 but that’s not the point is it.’ After killing his wife on May 23 last year, McCann continued to work delivering takeaways and again texted Miss Lawson from his wife’s phone saying ‘I love you’ before dropping food to her.
Their son Callum invited them to a barbecue the next day and McCann again used his wife’s phone to reply. he took Miss Lawson to buy food for the barbecue, where he got drunk. his children’s suspicions were raised when they found their mother’s mobile phone and earrings in his jacket pocket.
On the bank holiday Monday, two days after Mrs McCann was killed, human remains were found by a woman walking her dog at Reddish Vale Country Park, near stockport.
McCann called police later that evening to report his wife as missing. he was arrested.
CCTV showed him carrying two heavy bin bags from a car towards the park and returning emptyhanded ten minutes later.
he was also seen carrying black bin bags and other items to a recycling centre. McCann of brinnington, stockport, admitted murder and faces a life term when he is sentenced today.
he told police he was hannibal Lecter – the cannibal serial killer in The silence Of The Lambs – adding that he killed his wife and ‘disposed of her like garbage’ after he lost control ‘and could not stop’.
Prosecutor Andrew smith said that the couple had been childhood sweethearts. during their argument, at 9am on a saturday, a neighbour texted Mrs McCann to ask if she was all right.
A reply said they had been arguing over frozen chips but it was unclear whether it was sent by Mrs McCann or her husband.
defence barrister Louise blackwell QC said: ‘There was a lack of premeditation and all this blew up for a totally unnecessary reason.’
In a letter, McCann said: ‘I would like to stress how truly, truly sorry I am to my wife’s family and my three children.’
In a statement, Miss Lawson said: ‘We have all had to come to terms with the realisation the person found was our mum and that our dad caused her death.
‘We love our mum very much but we love our dad and realise he will go to prison for a very long time, but we hope he gets the help he needs.’
‘Disposed of her like garbage’