KILLER ON THE PROWL
CHILLING CCTV FOOTAGE SHOWS A DOUBLE KILLER PROWLING QUEEN STREET. TODAY HE STARTS A LIFE SENTENCE FOR HIS MURDEROUS ATTACK
A HOTEL receptionist who stabbed his ex-girlfriend and her new partner to death in a “savage and senseless” attack in the centre of Cardiff has been jailed for a minimum of 23 years.
But the families of his victims yesterday said they were “bitterly disappointed” with the length of the sentence.
Andrew Saunders, who was 20 at the time of the murderous attack, was given a life sentence at Cardiff Crown Court with a minimum term of 23 years and four months after he admitted murdering Zoe Morgan and Lee Simmons.
Sentencing, Mrs Justice Nicola Davies said: “They had their lives ahead of them.”
She told Saunders: “In a sustained and brutal attack, you ended those lives. You took away the futures of Lee Simmons and Zoe Morgan.”
Meanwhile, the devastated family of Mr Simmons yesterday thanked the killer’s family for helping to ensure a speedy arrest and conviction.
The killings happened at about 6am on September 28 on Cardiff’s Queen Street.
After yesterday’s sentencing, South Wales Police and the Crown Prosecution Service released chilling CCTV footage of Saunders. He was caught on camera at Morrisons supermarket on Newport Road on September 20. Prosecutor Philip Bennetts QC said this is when the defendant bought two knives and latex gloves, which were later used in the attack.
Footage was also released showing him prowling Queen Street shortly before the stabbings.
He can be seen walking along the dark street, near Queens Arcade, past Starbucks and JD Sports. His victims worked at the nearby Matalan store.
Prosecutors said Saunders and Ms Morgan started dating in June 2014 and were together for about two years.
As reported in yesterday’s Echo, the court heard Saunders was “very controlling” and became depressed when Ms Morgan ended the relationship.
Ms Morgan, 21, and Mr Simmons, 33, met while they were working together at Matalan and started dating in July last year.
The defendant sent his ex a message accusing her of cheating and threatening: “I will kill whoever it is.”
Mr Bennetts said Saunders searched online “16 steps to kill someone and not get caught” and “how long do murderers get in prison?” and left a suicide note before launching his attack.
Prosecutors said he stabbed Mr Simmons with an eight-inch knife,
before telling Ms Morgan: “I’m coming for you next.”
He chased her towards Boots and attacked her with a 10-inch knife.
The couple were pronounced dead by paramedics at the scene and a postmortem examination confirmed they died from multiple stab wounds.
Saunders returned to his family home at about 6.10am and sent a text message to his father saying: “Thanks for being a pathetic, useless father. Just killed two people. Cheers.”
He then updated his Facebook status to “f***”, adding “product of society”.
The defendant was arrested in Castleton, Newport, and told police: “Sometimes you just snap.”
He added: “I’m really sorry for what I did. I just lost control. Your head is a weird thing.”
Defence barrister Winston Roddick QC said his client was under “significant emotional distress” at the time.
He said Saunders was “genuinely remorseful”, adding: “He wishes he could turn the clock back.”
Mrs Justice Davies told the defendant: “Whatever your emotional state, you took the lives of two people in a savage and senseless attack.
“You robbed the families of Lee Simmons and Zoe Morgan of a muchloved son and a much-loved daughter. The effect on each family has been devastating.”
She noted there was a “significant degree” of planning and premeditation.
Saunders thanked the judge as he was taken down and apologised to the families in the public gallery.
In a statement released after sentencing, Mr Simmons’ family said: “No sentence or punishment will ever compensate for the loss of Lee’s life.
“The whole family has been left devastated by this horrific and unprovoked crime; we have been deeply shocked by the brutality of it.
“It has not only had a massive impact upon ours and Zoe’s family but, we believe, also Andrew Saunders’ family.
“We will never be able to forgive him for selfishly taking Lee away from us but we would like to thank his family for fully co-operating with the police in helping to secure his speedy arrest and conviction.”
The family of Ms Morgan, a former pupil at Whitchurch High School, said: “We are all totally heartbroken and will miss our beautiful, intelligent girl for the rest of our lives.
“Zoe and her partner Lee could have had a bright and happy future together and will miss out on so much.”
They added: “Every day, we wake up and remember Zoe is not here and the terrible feeling you get, you cannot explain.
“No matter how long this evil individual gets in prison, it will make no difference to the life sentence that we have until we die.
“I hope that every day Saunders is thinking about what he has done to us and what he has done to our beautiful daughter.”
After the hearing, the families expressed their “bitter disappointment” with the sentence.
And Detective Inspector Mark O’Shea, South Wales Police’s senior investigating officer in the case, described Saunders as “a truly despicable man” whose actions amounted to “the most cowardly of murders”.
He added: “He is a cold calculating killer who planned this crime over a number of weeks.
“He brutally killed those two wonderful young people out of an immature jealousy that cannot be explained or understood by any right thinking person.
“He has offered no mitigation and displayed no remorse.
“He is a truly despicable man. He deserves to spend the majority of his life in prison where he will hopefully have time to reflect on the gravity of his offences.”