Millionaire admits to manslaughter of girlfriend
A “COLD-HEARTED” businessman has admitted leaving his badly injured and bleeding partner to die at the bottom of the stairs in the home they shared in Kinver.
Natalie Connolly, a 26-yearold mother-of-one, was found with more than 40 separate injuries, including serious internal trauma injuries, and was found naked in the hallway of the property in Kenrose Mill.
John Broadhurst left her there after a night of drinking, before going to bed. He called emergency services callously telling them his girlfriend was as ‘ dead as a donut.’
Broadhurst, aged 40, admitted gross negligence manslaughter part way during a trial at Birmingham Crown Court.
A post-mortem showed Miss Connolly had died from acute alcohol intoxication and blunt force injuries.
Police were called to the property on December 18, 2016, after Broadhurst called saying he had found his partner dead following a night out.
He claimed the two of them had drunk alcohol and taken drugs, following which she had fallen asleep downstairs. He claimed that her injuries were as a result of consensual sexual activity.
The court heard the two were in a relationship and had recently moved into the rented property in Kinver. On the night of Miss Connolly’s death they had been to a football match followed by a curry, before returning home. They had been due to fly to Dubai a couple of days later.
Senior Investigating Officer, Detective Inspector Victoria Downing said: “Natalie was callously and cold-heartedly left fatally injured at the bottom of the stairs by Broadhurst yet he didn’t call for help until 9.30am and then showed total disregard for what he had done when he spoke to the emergency services.”
Broadhurst was cleared of murdering Miss Connolly and causing her grievous bodily harm on the directions of the judge following legal submissions part-way through his trial at Birmingham Crown Court.
However, the 40-year-old has admitted manslaughter by leaving Miss Connolly unsupervised and failing to contact the emergency services in circumstances where “a risk of death as a result of her condition would have been obvious”.
Explaining the Crown’s decision to accept Broadhurst’s plea to a lesser charge, prosecutor David Mason QC told the court : “The evidence in this case, which is an extremely unusual case, has been very complicat- ed. The family (of the victim) have been consulted and are entirely content with the view that the prosecution have taken.”
Broadhurst, a property developer said to have a fortune of around £15 million, had separated from a former partner, who was pregnant with their second child, around three months before Miss Connolly’s death.
The court heard that Miss Connolly, who had suffered a “blow-out” fracture to her left eye, bruising and internal injuries, had told witnesses that she and the defendant had an interest in masochistic sex.
A paramedic told Broadhurst’s trial that the father-ofthree appeared hungover and did not seem “unduly upset” after finding his partner’s body at about 9.30am.
Broadhurst, of Blakeshall Farm, Wolverley, will be sentenced on Monday after being granted bail.
Adjourning the case, trial judge Mr Justice Julian Knowles told Broadhurst : “You have pleaded guilty to manslaughter.
“Whilst it is not a charge of murder, it is nonetheless an exceptionally serious offence. All sentencing options remain open. You should be prepared for a custodial sentence of some length.”