Man who killed stepdaughter and husband handed 29-year minimum jail sentence

A man who killed his stepdaughter and her husband in their home before picking their children up from school has been jailed for at least 29 years.

Parents-of-four Josh Bashford, 33, and Chloe Bashford, 30, were found dead at their home in Newhaven, East Sussex, on June 9 2023.

Derek Martin, 67, from Brighton, admitted manslaughter of the couple in August 2023, but denied murder, claiming he was suffering from an “abnormality of mental functioning” at the time.

Last month, jurors at Brighton Law Courts rejected Martin’s claims of “diminished responsibility”, finding him guilty on both counts of murder.

After killing the couple, Martin collected two of their children from school and met all four in a Costa Coffee before taking them to their grandmother’s house, the court heard.

On Thursday, Mrs Justice Justine Thornton KC  jailed Martin for life with a minimum term of 29 years, saying: “Your attacks were driven by rage and resentment.

“The murders of Chloe and Josh has caused profound grief to their families.

“As a result of your actions, their families will suffer for the rest of their lives.

“Chloe and Josh were killed in their homes where they were entitled to feel safe.

“There is only one sentence for murder, and that is imprisonment for life.”

Grieving mother Elaine Sturges, 65, told the court that her life will  “never be the same” after the loss of her daughter and she is putting on a “brave face” as she brings up Mr and Mrs Bashford’s four children.

She said that Mrs Bashford would have “felt safe” with Martin as he had known her since she was born.

The court heard a statement from the couple’s eldest son, Brooklynn Bashford, who paid tribute to his “loving” parents and said: “There is not a single day that goes by where I don’t think about them.”

The 18-year-old said he has “nightmares” and “constant flashbacks” of the day his parents died.

Speaking of Martin, he said: “I will never forgive him.”

The court previously heard that Martin and Mrs Bashford were reportedly “close” and had spent the morning together, before he attacked her with a hammer and stabbed her eight times, just after midday.

He then ambushed Mr Bashford, who had been driving home from work, and chased him into an upstairs bedroom before stabbing and ligaturing him.

Later, after stopping to dispose of Mrs Bashford’s phone and drop off the children, he went into Brighton police station and said: “I’ve murdered two people.”

Prosecuting, Julian Evans KC told the trial the couple were killed in “quick succession” inside their home .

Mr Evans KC said Martin first attacked Mrs Bashford with a hammer at around 12.16pm.

He then went into the kitchen to “retrieve” a large knife, which he used to “repeatedly stab” the mother and cause her severe injuries from which she died.

Some four minutes later, at around 12.20pm, Mr Bashford arrived home.

“Just after he entered the house, Derek Martin attacked him,” the prosecutor said.

“In the course of the attack, Derek Martin repeatedly stabbed Josh with a knife and compressed his neck with a ligature, causing injuries from which he too died.”

Martin removed the handles from the doors of the bedrooms in which the bodies were lying, changed his clothes and took the doorbell camera off the front door, the court heard.

While Martin was no longer in a relationship with Mrs Bashford’s mother, Ms Sturges, he had stayed “close friends” with his stepdaughter and she referred to him as “step dad” in a text to her friend the day she died, the court heard.

Her eldest son described Martin as a “grandfather figure” and said he was “easy to be around”, but added that he had a “bad temper” and could “switch up” easily.

Martin first admitted being responsible for the killings in police interview on June 10 2023.

Mr Evans recounted the interview in court: “He said that he felt he was getting ‘used’ all of the time. He could not do enough for people and he had got into a lot of debt himself as well.

“Then he said that he ‘just lost it’ and he ‘just flipped’. He hit Chloe on the head with the hammer. He did not know what had happened.

“He said that Josh came in the door. He (Martin) was behind the door. He said that Josh saw him with the knife in his hand and he ran upstairs.

“Martin followed Josh upstairs and Josh ran into the bedroom.

“He said that he remembered stabbing Josh. He stabbed him somewhere in the front of his body. He did not know how many times he stabbed him.”

Five psychiatrists were instructed to assess whether Martin could use the diminished responsibility defence.

The court heard that Martin had been suffering a mild to moderate “depressive episode” at the time of the attack.

Judge Thornton said she gave “very little weight” to Martin’s age when deciding his sentence.

Martin was jailed for life, with a minimum term of 29 years. He will also be ordered to pay a victim surcharge.

He has already served 878 days of his sentence on remand.