19 years for mum killer
Monster put head in freezer after family home sword attack
VICTIM Angela was murdered by son
A MAN who decapitated his mother and put her head in a freezer has been jailed for life.
Philip Tarver, 47, was high on cocaine when he attacked Angela, 86, with an ornamental sword at the home they shared in Woking, Surrey.
As well as her head being found in the freezer, her finger was discovered inside a kettle, the Old Bailey heard.
Tarver was sentenced to life and told he would serve a minimum of 19 years. He was also convicted of threatening to kill his father, Colin.
Judge Anne Molyneaux said he had been “suffering from a mental disorder” at the time, induced by drugs.
She told the court: “Colin Tarver has spoken of his wife’s generous nature and her love of life. She brought joy to all who knew her. He has lost his best friend, the love and light of his life.”
The jury heard Tarver had taken cocaine and drunk beer and vodka the day before the attack.
On the morning of December 19 last year, he walked downstairs wearing a woman’s negligee and began unplugging electronic devices. When his father Colin, 84, confronted him about the “entirely unusual” behaviour, Tarver pushed him out of his bedroom. Mr Tarver told the court he heard his wife scream, and he found her lying on her back, her chair having been pushed over backwards. He then noticed his son was holding the sword, and had used it to stab his mother in the chest.
“He looked strange, demented. His eyes were a yellow colour. He said: ‘I’ve got to kill you’,” Mr Tarver said. He grabbed the sword and “wrestled” with his son for minutes, disarming him, the jury heard.
Colin Tarver then ran out of the house and called 999. When armed police arrived, his son came to the front door waving a flag and holding a knife, saying: “I surrender, I surrender.” When officers entered the house they discovered Tarver had decapitated his mother using a kitchen knife.
For the threats to kill his father, Tarver was jailed for 18 months to run concurrently with the term for the murder.