‘I just want to apologise for what I’m about to do’ SCENE

Killer’s speech to witnesses before slashing love rival’s throat in busy travel agent

A SPURNED lover “apologised” to witnesses before he cut the throat of his former fiancee’s new partner in front of children and horrified customers at a busy travel agents.

Andrew Burke, 31, will spend at least 26 years in jail for the “cold-blooded execution” of Cassie Hayes, 28.

In court yesterday, Cassie’s mum Tracy called him the “most evil, horrific monster walking this earth”.

Cassie was in a relationship with Burke’s ex Laura Williams, with whom he has a four-year-old daughter.

He was awaiting sentencing for a harassment conviction against Laura, and was being investigated for harassing Cassie, when he calmly walked into the TUI shop in Southport,

Merseyside, armed with a five-inch kitchen knife.

Burke, of St Helens, told witnesses, including two children: “I just want to apologise for what I’m about to do.”

Prosecutor Gordon Cole

QC told Liverpool crown court: “He lifted her head, exposing her neck with his left arm and then ran his right hand across her throat.”

Burke was lying on the floor when police arrived.

He told a firearms officer:

“I’m no threat to you. The knife’s on the table.

“I thought I’d waited till there were no kids in there. It was either kill me or kill her, so I killed her.

“The only reason I wasn’t still cutting her when you turned up was cause you’d shoot me. I didn’t want to put you through that.”

Burke had posted “angry” messages on social media, including a picture of a tattoo on his hands, saying: “What goes around comes back around.” On the day of the attack, he had written “#toolate”. Laura described Cassie as “my future wife and my forever”. Cassie’s mum Tracy said: “You took my beautiful daughter, my baby – in the most horrific away. “I hope you rot in hell, you evil coward of a man.” Judge David Aubrey told Burke: “You perpetrated a cold-blooded execution in public for the purpose of revenge. The killing was an act of unspeakable savagery… [against] a totally innocent person.”

You took away my beautiful baby, you evil coward of a man TRACY HAYES SPEAKS TO HER DAUGHTER’S KILLER