Law Graduate Gets Life For Fiancé Murder

Happier Times: Sam & Blaze

An Extinction Rebellion activist, with dreams of becoming a human rights lawyer, was yesterday jailed for life, with a twenty-four year minimum, for stabbing to death her fiancé.

Law graduate Blaze Lily Wallace, 28, followed Samuel Mayo, 34, after a domestic at their home and stabbed him in the street.

Witnesses heard his final, desperate words as he repeatedly shouted: “Please Blaze. I love you, please Blaze.”

Bare-chested Samuel suffered a fatal 4cm wound in Lower Richmond Road, Mortlake on July 18, last year and bled to death at around 9.45pm as he begged motorists and passers-by to call an ambulance.

The Kingston-upon-Thames Crown Court jury of eight women and four men unanimously convicted Wallace of murder and possessing an offensive weapon after ten-and-a-half hours deliberation following the three-week trial.

His heartbroken mother Sarah Johnstone’s victim impact statement was read aloud by her other son Bailey Graham. She wrote: Learning that my son Sam had been murdered was absolutely devastating for me and my family.

“To be put through a trial was cruel for me and my family. we have to wake up everyday knowing we will not see Sam again.

“He was a kind, considerate, son, brother and uncle and always made us laugh and nothing seemed to get him down.

Arrested: Blaze Wallace

“Our pain will never go away and the family will always have a piece missing.” 

Judge Rajeev Shetty told a noticeably heavier Wallace, wearing a black Casper The Friendly Ghost sweatshirt with her hair braided in a cornrows-style: “You stabbed him once to the chest.

“You stabbed him with sufficient force at a downward angle for the knife to go through his ribcage cartilage and into the heart. He shouted for help and was losing a lot of blood at this time.

“In contrast to the people who tried to assist him, you did nothing and left the scene, allowing him to die and showing a complete lack of remorse that you had stabbed him in the chest.

“He had a life that like yours was blighted by heavy drug use, but despite this he was well-liked by his family and was well-known in the local area.

“It was a volatile relationship and he had been violent towards you and witnesses gave evidence of a central theme of arguments in the street and home in which you were also the aggressor.”

Mayo left with some belongings after the pair rowed in the back garden. “You followed him around six minutes later. You took with you a large knife knife and I reject completely that you took that in case things got violent and you had to protect yourself.

“You kept that knife out of view and in rage and anger at being slighted or being called ‘nasty’ you caught up with him outside The Stag Brewery, Lower Richmond Road.

“He was no threat to you at all and he neither attacked you or attempted to attack you and I reject this was excessive self-defence.

“You stabbed him in the middle of the chest where his heart was. There must have been an intention to kill.

“I sentence you to life imprisonment with a minimum of twenty-four years. That is no guarantee of release, you may never be released.”

The jury rejected Wallace’s claim Mayo was armed with an improvised sharpened wooden chopstick and she was simply using the knife to ward him off to protect herself.

Wallace graduated from St. Mary’s University, Twickenham with a law degree in 2017 and when arrested was one month short of completing her Masters in Human Rights & Legal Practice at the University of Roehampton.

She had ambitions to work abroad as a human rights lawyer in Germany, Canada and Asia and gave birth to a daughter, while in custody, last March.

Her lawyer Joe Stone KC told the court: “This isn’t a lady with a proven record of violence. She is not an experienced criminal, used to London’s prisons, in fact quite the reverse.

“It would not be an exaggeration to say it will have a profound effect on her life, now and for the next two decades at least,” added the KC, describing Wallace as “not a ruthless killer.”

Both were under the influence of heroin, cocaine and cannabis that evening and had rowed at Wallace’s one-bedroom housing association flat in nearby Mullins Path.

CCTV footage showed Wallace deliberately following Mayo, while armed with the knife in her pocket, catching up with him outside the huge Stag Brewery.

Corinne Bramwell urged the court to order a minimum of twenty-five years custody. “This was a planned attack in which a weapon was used. It was taken to the scene by Ms Wallace.

“The defendant intended to kill Mr Mayo. She followed him for some distance armed with a knife and after catching up with him stabbed him once in the heart with a sharp knife, without a backwards glance.

“It was pre-meditated and she was under the influence of Class A drugs and the jury rejected self-defence for an incident that lasted sixteen seconds.

“This was not a snap in the middle of an attack, but as earlier shown the row that proceeded him leaving Mullins Path involved Ms Wallace being the more aggressive and unpleasant party.” 

At the start of the trial prosecutor Jane Bickerstaff KC told the jury: “The defendant had clearly caught up with her intended victim and they disappear off camera to the left of the screen.

“The incident is not captured on CCTV footage, but in just under thirty seconds Mayo appears back on screen and he is now fatally injured.

“He can be seen to run into the road and back onto the pavement on the other side of the road, where he collapsed and died.”

“It is the Crown’s case that the defendant had a large kitchen knife concealed at her right side. She took it out and stabbed Mr Mayo once, straight into his heart.

“We say this was intentional and with no lawful reason and the defendant’s intention at the time was to kill her boyfriend, or at the very least to cause him really serious harm.”

Eight stone Mayo bled to death at the scene and when police arrived at 9.57pm they immediately recognised him as a local drug user, who regularly begged outside Tesco’s and Mortlake train station.

He was taken to Kingston Hospital and pronounced dead at 10.33pm.

Locals heard some of his final words as he shouted: “Please Blaze. I love you, please Blaze.” 

Police officers arrived at Wallace’s home at 1.00am, but she failed to give them the same explanation, regarding the chopstick.

Wallace told the jury why she did not want to talk to the officers. “My dad told me not to say anything and I had no solicitor. I did not want to spend the night in a cell, it was overwhelming.”

Describing that night’s events she explained: “I said: ‘Get the f*** out of my house,’ and he said: ‘You’re nasty,’ or something and then walked off.

“There was a big clean knife on the side and it freaked me out. The logical thing was to keep the knife on me out of harms way and I did not think to throw it in the bin,” she told the court.

“I saw him in the distance and tried to apologise to him for not letting him have a bath and went to say I was freaked out by his weapon-hiding and he pulled out a sharpened chopstick and said: ‘That’s what time it is.’

“It was wooden, but bladed, like a home-made shank, like an ice pick and he used it like an inconspicuous weapon.”

Wallace claimed Mayo had been physically abusive during their three-month relationship and had smashed her into a hallway mirror - cutting her hand - and punched her in the stomach the week before.

“He started moving his hand up until the chopstick was by my neck and said: ‘C’mon. Say pussy one more time.’

“I’ve frozen up and tried to back away from him and he has gone to grab me where the knife was in my pocket and I pulled the knife out of my pocket backwards and he has pulled the chopstick backwards off my neck.

“I put the knife out as a deterrent to get back and he has lunged forward and I did not get a chance to pull the knife back.

“He has got a mad look on his face and I have felt the knife go in quite hard.

“I said: ‘What’s wrong with you?’ and could see the slit in his chest and a tiny bit of blood on the knife and he started shouting: ‘Blaze, Blaze.’

“It was horrible. I did not mean any impact, I meant to gesture for him to get back,” Wallace told the jury.

“I was in fear of my belly and the foetus inside from either a punch or a stab. If I hadn’t had the knife on me I’d have to defend myself with my hands.

“I did not want to cause any harm. I wanted to deter him from attacking me by holding the knife out.”

No wooden chopstick was found in the area during the subsequent police investigation.

Two old unrelated charges of assaulting PC David Jones in North Warpole Way, Mortlake and Jessica Whiting in Mullins Path on August 3, 2020 were dropped by the prosecution. 

The judge sentenced Wallace to four years concurrent to the life term for the offensive weapon charge.

Boot Camp Fitness Instructor Accused Of Internet Date Rape

A military-style boot camp fitness instructor repeatedly raped and sexually assaulted a younger schoolteacher on their first internet date, a court heard.

Former British Army Airborne Gunner Christopher Millington-Lee, 44, flattered the woman by extending their Bumble introduction by twenty-four hours and allowing their online relationship to develop.

“There was full-on kinky texting for two weeks,” she told the Kingston-upon-Thames Crown Court jury, where British Military Fitness instructor Millington-Lee denies the charges.

“I wouldn’t normally go out with someone that old. He was a bit out of my age range, but I thought I would give him a chance,” the woman said from behind a screen.

“He came across as ex-military in the way he held himself and the way he walked and he had quite a posh accent.”

However, she said the date with Millington-Lee, whose full-time career is online business marketing, ended with him smothering her with a pillow and making death threats as he raped her.

Millington-Lee consumed alcohol during their pub date, but the schoolteacher kept to soft drinks and agreed to return to his Wyvil Road, Vauxhall flat because of difficulties getting a train home.

“It had been a good date and he said he wanted a kiss and cuddle and I was up for that,” said the woman. “However, I wouldn’t have gone back to his flat if he had not already agreed we were not going to have sex.”

She told the trial she consented to kissing Millington-Lee while both were naked on his bed, but not to intercourse.

“It really shocked me and I was thinking: ‘This is weird.’ It took a split second for me to realise, I didn’t expect it.

“I did not find that a natural progression because it happened so fast. I didn’t say ‘stop’. I was shocked and that’s where the fear came from.

“I remember thinking: ‘Do I push this guy off, who I don’t know in an area of London I don’t know or get onboard with it?’ With a military-trained person in his flat in Vauxhall.

“I thought it would be easier to be onboard with it. That was quite a quick decision.”

The woman explained she was shocked at how the kissing and cuddling developed, but once it did felt powerless to stop the physically-stronger Millington-Lee.

“I did not want to have sex that night, but as it seemed it wasn’t going to be very bad I wasn’t going to push a muscular man, who had been drinking, off me.

“A man who could have got angry that I accused him.”

She insisted the consensual petting was not an indication she wanted physical intimacy to progress. “Having a kiss and cuddle in bed was agreed in the pub, those parameters had not changed.

“I thought it would be over soon so I could handle it, but he enjoyed kinky violence and if I pushed him off how would he react?

“I would like to point out he hit me by this point. He hit the back of my legs and pulled my hair.

“It was very intense sex with a touch of violence to it.”

Following the date on June 2, last year the woman confided the events to family and eventually reported Millington-Lee to the police eight months later.

In her recorded police interview, which was played in court she added: “He would put my hands on him, put his hands on my breasts, it was heavy-petting behaviour and it would build up to sex again.

“He slapped my inner thigh and across my breasts. It wasn’t that hard, but it felt it could build-up and I was scared of that.

“When he was on top of me he said he was going to kill me and had his hand over my nose and mouth.”

She also said Millington-Lee twice smothered her with a pillow.

“Once it got violent I felt I had to get through it until the morning. I was very mission-based and focused on my end goal.”

The woman told the police Millington-Lee also showed her explicit pornography on his phone and made further threats.

“He said: ‘I could kill you. Nobody would come looking for you. Your mother and sister would be happy.’

“I left at around 7.00am in the morning and he walked me to the train station.”

She did not want to go to hospital the next day. “I did not want it to become dramatic and a big deal.

“Chris also told me he used to be a policeman so I wanted to stay as far away from that as possible.

“In the days after everything was my fault and I believed if I reported it the day it happened I wouldn’t be allowed to work with children again.”

Millington-Lee has pleaded not guilty to six counts of rape; one attempted rape; sexual assault; attempted sexual assault; two counts of sexual activity and causing actual bodily harm.

Trial continues…………..

Off The Rails: Cocaine-Using Driver Crashed Train

A cocaine-using train driver, who crashed into station buffers when he passed out after a sleepless night, has been jailed for sixteen weeks.

Erkan Mehmet, 44, of Middle Street, Waltham Abbey, pleaded guilty at Inner London Crown Court to endangering the safety of the railway.

On October 12, 2021, Mehmet was driving a London Overground train to Enfield Town. 

As the train entered Platform Two it failed to stop and crashed into the buffers, causing the front carriage to derail. 

Pictures from the scene show the carriage came completely off the tracks and stuck approximately five feet in the air at an angle.

There were approximately fifty passengers on board at the time, a small number of which reported minor injuries and shock.

As is routine, Mehmet was breathalysed at the scene and blew negative, however a urine sample showed a presence of cocaine in his system at the time with a reading of 1,250 ng/mL.

For cocaine to be present in a urine test it most likely entered his system in the 24 hour period before the incident.

In his interview he claimed to detectives he had never taken drugs in his life and had fallen asleep while driving after only having a couple of hours sleep the night before.

Detective Constable Gemma Littlewood said: “Train drivers are entrusted with the safety of every passenger onboard so it is frankly unthinkable that Mehmet turned up to work in a condition which left him falling asleep at the wheel, putting them all in significant danger. 

“It is only through luck that nobody was seriously injured or worse, killed, as a result of his actions that day.

“Investigators have worked closely with Arriva Rail London, who fully supported the investigation, to ensure he has been brought before the courts to face justice and while incidents like this are rare, we will continue to relentlessly investigate anyone suspected of putting passengers in danger and hold them to account.”

Paul Hutchings, managing director at Arriva Rail London, said: "We take the safety and security of our customers and colleagues incredibly seriously. 

“We have a zero-tolerance policy for drugs and alcohol, which exceeds industry standards, and the driver involved was immediately suspended following the incident and subsequently dismissed after returning a positive test result.”

Peeping Tom At Wimbledon Station Ladies

A female using the Ladies toilet at Wimbledon train station was shocked to see a mystery male stare at her from under the cubicle door.

She yelled out to a friend at the south-west London station and the unknown man fled the scene.

British Transport Police (BTP) have released this CCTV image of a male suspect they are interested to talk to.

The investigators are appealing to members of the public for their assistance in identifying him.

At 11.30pm on Tuesday, May 2 the victim was using the cubicle when a man put his head under the cubicle door to watch her.

The victim shouted to her friend and the man quickly left the area. 

Officers believe the man in the CCTV images may have information which could help their investigation.

If you recognise him or have any information please contact BTP by texting 61016 or calling 0800 40 50 40 quoting ref 423 of 30/04/23.

Ex-Gangster Dave Courtney Cleared Of Knuckle Dusters Charge

Another day in Court: 'Dodgy Dave'

Hardman Dave Courtney has beaten a police charge over knuckle dusters, a dagger and martial arts throwing star found at his landmark ‘Camelot Castle’ home in south-east London.

The 64 year-old, of Chestnut Rise, Plumstead, appeared at Bromley Magistrates’ Court alongside housemate Brendan McGirr, 56.

Both were charged with possession of offensive weapons in a private place on December 29, 2022, after local police visited the address to discuss Courtney’s New Year organised bare knuckle fights. 

Officers returned half-an-hour later with a Sergeant and identified various weapons scattered around the property.

The charge against Bermondsey-born Courtney was withdrawn and film props company boss McGill pleaded guilty to illegally possessing all the dangerous items.

Prosecutor Sophie Akister told the court officers visited the address at approximately 6.40pm and only McGill was home, with Courtney on holiday.

“The officers wanted to speak to Mr Courtney because of intelligence reports regarding his New Year parties and organised bare knuckled fights.

“Mr McGill answered and allowed the officers inside, where they recognised various offensive weapons that are not allowed in a private place.

Brendan McGirr

“They returned around thirty minutes later and noticed many swords, some in buckets, but they were all clearly blunt and Mr McGill produced weapons and handed them over to the police voluntarily.

“They were hanging on walls and strewn across shelves and other surfaces and none were in locked cases,” added the prosecutor.

The six knuckle dusters were of various designs and the throwing star is a Japanese weapon known as a shuriken.  

Courtney’s home is a local landmark, bedecked with union flags and flags of St. George, plus a huge side wall mural of the ex-gangster depicted as a knight sitting on a knuckle duster-themed throne surrounded by his men.

“In a statement to police Mr McGill said the items recovered were all film props belonging to his company and he felt possession of them was lawful,” explained Miss Akister.

“He said they were for the purpose of theatrical productions and film and television and were used in rehearsals and were like displays in a museum.”

“I am asking for pre-sentence reports in this case,” said David Richter, defending, before McGill was bailed to Bexley Magistrates’ Court on August 14.

“We will go along with your request and we are going to adjourn for pre-sentence reports,” announced magistrate John Fitzgerald.

“You have pleaded guilty, but we are not going to sentence you today,” he told McGill. “I urge you to co-operate with the Probation Service. It is your opportunity to state your case.”

Jail For Train Knifeman

A train ticket-dodger was caught with a knife on him after an inspector caught him travelling without paying his fare.

Twenty-four hours later Suwilanji Siwale, 21, was starting a twenty-six week prison sentence.

British Transport Police officers attached to the County Lines Task Force searched him when alerted by his nervous behaviour.

Siwale, of Heronsgate, Frinton-on-Sea, Essex pleaded guilty to possessing an article with a blade or point at Chelmsford railway station on June 22.

He appeared in custody the following day at North Essex Magistrates' Court, which heard he was challenged by a Revenue Inspector when unable to produce a valid train ticket.

Due to his suspicious behaviour he was detained and searched by police officers and the concealed knife was found in his waistband.

PC Moyses Coutinho from BTP's County Lines Task Force said: "There is no reason why someone should carry a knife on the rail network, and I am pleased the courts were able to get this individual sentenced in such a timely manner. 

“In twenty-four hours he was found, arrested and sentenced, taking another potentially dangerous individual off the streets."

Teenage Schoolgirl Targeted By Train Creep

A middle-aged train creep, who harassed a 13 year-old schoolgirl, has been locked-up.

Roger Iriri, 55, of Ford Road, Dagenham, pleaded guilty to three counts of causing intentional harassment, alarm or distress contrary to the Public Order Act.

At Barkingside Magistrates’ Court he received 26 weeks imprisonment.

At just after 3.00pm on July 1, last year the victim entered Barking railway station as she travelled home from school.

She was approached by Iriri, who invaded her personal space and asked her how she was and what school she went to.

Two members of the public intervened to move the victim away from him, but as they did so he made a series of sexually explicit comments aimed at her.

The police were called by security guards at the station and officers raced to the scene and arrested Iriri.

British Transport Police Sergeant Helen Hardless said: “No one should be subjected to such repulsive remarks as they travel, especially not a young girl returning from school. 

“There is simply no place for offenders like Iriri on the rail network, and this case should serve as a stark warning to offenders – we will do everything in our power to bring you to justice.

“If you witness or experience a sexual harassment on the railway, report it to us by texting 61016. No report is too small or too trivial and we will always take your seriously.”

Heartless Foreign Thieves Nicked Train Passengers Bags

A pair of heartless bag thieves, who teamed up to target victims in rail station cafés, have been jailed following a British Transport Police (BTP) investigation.

Hernan Montero-Villegas, 54, (L) and Miguel Angel Contreras-Nova, 39, (R) pleaded guilty to multiple counts of theft and one count of money laundering.

At Inner London Crown Court Montero-Villegas received 18 months imprisonment and Contreras-Nova 14 months imprisonment.

The first incident occurred on February 25 when Montero-Villegas targeted a 54-year-old woman, who was drinking a cup of tea in Liverpool Street station’s Soho Coffee café.

He spotted her rucksack on the floor and began manoeuvring it away from her with his foot, before taking his own rucksack off, concealing hers behind it and leaving with both.

The victim’s rucksack contained €100, £40, her driving licence, bank cards and a phone charger.

Less than a month later, on March 22, Montero-Villegas and Contreras-Nova stole a 50-year-old woman’s bag from the Starbucks inside London Waterloo station as she sat with her colleagues.

Contreras-Nova pretended to be on the phone and walked around the café while Montero-Villegas again used his foot to move the bag away from the victim. 

He picked it up and left the café with Contreras-Nova in tow.

Her bag contained a purse containing £200 and other various items including her reading glasses and an umbrella.

The final offence occurred on March 28 in London St Pancras’ Paul Express café when Montero-Villegas and Contreras-Nova again combined to swipe a 50-year-old man’s satchel.

It contained two Eurostar tickets, a film script, earphones, a phone charger and his passport.

Just two days later, on March 30, a BTP officer patrolling London Bridge station spotted the pair and arrested them in connection to the bag thefts.

They also had £3,000 cash on them.

PC Steve Bryan said: “Montero-Villegas and Contreras-Nova are clearly experienced bag snatchers, who have refined their tactics to avoid being detected by the unsuspecting victims they target.

“What they failed to realise is that the railway is a CCTV-rich environment and here at BTP we are relentless in our pursuit of thieves. We won’t stop until they’re put before the courts.

“I hope the adequately long prison terms handed down to them provides the three victims with the comfort of justice being served.

“If you’re a victim of theft on the railway, report it to us as soon as possible by texting 61016 – we’ll always take swift action.”

Ticket To Rye Sex Assault

British Transport Police (BTP) have released this image of a suspected train sex pest after a woman travelling to the coast with friends was molested.

Detectives are treating the investigation as sexual assault and are appealing to members of the public for their assistance in identifying the unknown male.

The incident occurred on-board a train between Ashford International and Rye in Kent. 

At around 11.30am on May 27, the victim was travelling towards to Camber Sands with three friends.

As part of the journey they boarded a service from Ashford to Rye and stood in the train’s carriage. 

A man was also standing in the carriage and during the journey he sexually assaulted the victim. 

When the train arrived at Rye, the man put on a black surgical mask and ran out of the station.

Detectives believe the man in the image may have information which could help their investigation.

If you recognise him, or have any information, please contact BTP by texting 61016 or calling 0800 40 50 40 quoting reference 396 of 27 May.

Alternatively, you can call Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111.