Man strangled his lover then called his mother

A KILLER who strangled his lover before confessing to his mother that he had done ‘something terrible’ was locked up yesterday.

David Anderson, 41, choked Louise O’Brien to death at their flat.

Police found the 36-year-old’s body on a bed, lying next to a heart-shaped chocolate.

Anderson, meanwhile, is thought to have used Miss O’Brien’s phone to make contact with a child to make it seem as if his lover was still alive.

He then went online to learn if murder accused are sent to jail.

The first offender had faced a murder allegation but prosecutors at the High Court in Glasgow instead accepted his guilty plea to a reduced charge of culpable homicide. Judge Lord Boyd remanded him in custody pending sentencing next month.

The court earlier heard the couple, of Perth, had been together for a year before the killing and were known to have fall-outs.

Weeks before the attack Anderson, a call centre worker, texted Miss O’Brien: ‘I’ve given my life to you. I’ve no interest in anyone else.’ However, he later told a colleague he planned to leave his lover and move to Dundee.

Prosecutor Bernard Ablett said the exact date of the killing was not known but Miss O’Brien, a former barmaid, was last seen on April 24 and her body was discovered four days later. During that time, Anderson called in sick to work and was described as ‘not his usual chirpy self’.

The killer made a series of web searches including: ‘If you are accused of murder, are you automatically put in prison?’

On April 28, Anderson told his mother: ‘I’ve done something terrible. I have broken the law.’

Police officers discovered Miss O’Brien’s body in a bedroom. Her mobile phone was checked and messages to a child were found.

Advocate depute Mr Ablett said: ‘It is suspected that Anderson was responsible for sending these texts to give the appearance that Louise was still alive.’

The court was told Miss O’Brien had injuries consistent with ‘manual strangulation’. Mr Ablett said: ‘The pathologists consider it likely that a firm grip was maintained until death.’