Mother killed in ‘medieval’ random attack on night out
A MAN has been jailed for 24 years for raping and murdering a mother-of-two after he poured petrol on her and set her alight while she was still alive.
Rhys Bennett, 23, admitted sexually assaulting and killing Jill Barclay, 47, in Aberdeen on Sept 17 2022 in attacks that the sentencing judge said were “medieval in their barbarity”.
Bennett, from Ballingry, Fife, did not know Ms Barclay before the attack, and met her while she was on a night out. He and his colleagues had been drinking at a pub in Dyce where his victim was also spending time.
The 23-year-old followed her as she made her way home, before launching an attack that the judge, Lord Arthurson, said “plainly involved extreme, sustained and frankly feral violence”.
Ms Barclay leaves behind a partner and two children, aged six and eight. Her family said she had been “a deeply loved life partner, mother and daughter”. In a statement released after Bennett’s sentencing at the High Court in Edinburgh, they said: “We would like to thank family, friends and the community for their comforting support following Jill’s tragic death as we have waited for justice.
“She didn’t deserve to die that day and especially in the unspeakable, brutal way it happened. This man has taken so much from us and changed our lives.”
Bennett followed her from the pub towards a derelict property at Farburn Gatehouse in Dyce. The labourer hid before attacking Ms Barclay, who worked for the energy firm Petrofac.
He assaulted Ms Barclay by repeatedly hitting and kicking her, stamping on her head and body, and hitting her head against a down pipe. Bennett also raped her during the attack, said Lorraine Glancy KC, prosecuting.
Bennett also admitted attempting to defeat the ends of justice by burning the clothes he wore that night.
Ms Barclay was still alive when he returned and he tried unsuccessfully to lift her into his van. He retrieved a can of petrol from the vehicle and poured it over her body and set her alight.
Sentencing him, Lord Anderson said he would have to serve a minimum of 24 years in prison before being eligible for parole. He was also placed on the sex offenders register indefinitely.