My girl healed my heart after crossbow killer left us for dead
A MUM has told how a crossbow maniac killed her boyfriend and shot her in the head when she was five months pregnant.
Deranged neighbour Anthony Lawrence broke in through the shared loft of his and Laura Sugden’s semi-detached houses and lay in wait for her and partner Shane Gilmer.
He then launched a murderous attack, killing Shane and shooting Laura in the head before leaving them for dead.
Amazingly, she and her unborn child survived.
In her first full interview,
Laura told how the birth of now two-year-old daughter
Ella “healed my heart” after
Shane died in front of her.
Laura, 30, said: “I don’t think I’ll ever get over what happened, but I have to be strong for Ella.
“I didn’t know how I was going to manage on my own but the minute Ella was born and I saw her, something in my heart healed.
“I’ve told her, ‘Daddy is a star’ and she’ll sometimes talk about him, asking, ‘My
Daddy loved me, didn’t he?’
“Every milestone reminds me that Shane isn’t here; her first step, her first birthday, and that will go on forever.”
Laura is now campaigning for tighter regulations around crossbows, which can be bought online for about £150.
Recalling the terrifying attack in January 2018, Laura told how she found her “odd, hermit” neighbour hiding in a bedroom.
She asked what he was doing before shouting to Shane: “Don’t come up, he’s got a gun.” Laura said: “I was terrified. It was surreal. I kept thinking, ‘This isn’t happening.’” Seconds later, Lawrence dragged Shane into the bedroom; he had been shot through the arm, with the bolt damaging his liver and kidney before embedding itself in his spine. Laura asked Lawrence: “Is that going to kill him?” The smirking 55-year-old replied: “Yes, and now I’m going to kill you”. As she begged for her life, Lawrence told Laura the attack was in revenge for getting him evicted, then shot her. Laura said: “Blood was gushing down my face and I felt dizzy. I heard Shane scream and I looked over at him. He was pale and crying.” Shane told her to get help, saying: “If you don’t go and keep you and the baby safe I’ll never forgive you.” Laura added: “He was gasping for breath.
“He looked at me, really looked at me, like the look someone gives you when they are going away for a long time, then told me, ‘Be strong, I love you.’” They were the last words Shane said to her. Lawrence fled and was found dead in a camper van two days later on the remote A170 near East Layton, North Yorks. Laura said: “I only wish I had killed him myself.” Despite her grief, Laura said Shane would have wanted her to be happy as she raises daughters Isabelle, now seven, and Ella alone. But she added: “I don’t believe you ever get over something like this. I can’t imagine the grieving ever comes to an end.”