Matthew Hardman

Timeline

• 1998 — Matthew Hardman moved to Llanfairpwll, Anglesey, when he was 13; his father died from a massive asthma attack.
• November 24, 2001 — Mabel Leyshon was stabbed in her home at Llanfairpwll, Anglesey, after Matthew Hardman broke in while she watched television.
• December 21, 2001 — Police disclosed that Mabel Leyshon’s heart had been removed and left on the floor near the body.
• January — Matthew Hardman was arrested in Llanfairpwll.
• August 2, 2002 — Matthew Hardman was found guilty of murdering Mabel Leyshon; sentencing ordered detention at Her Majesty’s pleasure and a minimum term of 12 years.
• August 2, 2002 — The judge lifted an order banning Hardman’s identification.
• August 3, 2002 — A minimum of 12 years was stated after the unanimous verdict; the teenage German exchange student left the court in tears and refused to comment.

Background

Matthew Hardman was 17. He was born and lived in Amlwch on the north coast of Anglesey before moving to Llanfairpwll in 1998, when he was 13. His parents lived apart; his father was separated from his mother and died from a massive asthma attack in 1998. Hardman remained close to his father and was upset by the tragedy. Hardman lived with his mother, Julia, a nurse, and her partner Alan Benneyworth, a former Ministry of Defence fireman, in a bungalow in Llanfairpwll.

Hardman attended David Huws School in Menai Bridge and completed one term at Coleg Menai in Bangor. He left David Huws School in Anglesey at the age of 16 and studied art and design at Menai College. He was a month into an art and design course when his focus turned to ritualistic murder. He also worked part-time as a kitchen porter at a local hotel. Between the ages of 13 and 16, Hardman had a weekly paper round that included visits to Mrs Leyshon’s bungalow. A family friend said: "He wasn't a weirdo. He didn't wear black, and neither was he a village bad lad. He was just a normal kid who wore jeans and trainers. That's what makes it all the more shocking."

A special needs tutor described Hardman as "a well behaved boy with a good sense of humour". The teacher who helped the defendant with dyslexia said: "He was always very well behaved," and that there had never been any disciplinary problems. The tutor said he was very pleasant and amenable, keen to learn, and that he asked questions; his writing and spelling were affected by dyslexia. Another former school pupil said: "He was a quiet lad, who kept himself to himself," and added: "He was not a very sociable person and stayed in most of the time." The school friend said no one suspected the 17-year-old had any involvement until he was arrested, and recalled: "At the time I was in his house I didn't see anything strange to make me believe that he did it." The same school friend said Hardman’s art portfolio was full of "morbid and depressing" images, particularly death, blood and knives, and said: "I don't think anyone thought much of it before this happened but then obviously as more evidence came out and looking back now... "But still it's very hard to believe because he's just a local lad," said the school friend.

The offence

Matthew Hardman broke into Mabel Leyshon’s home in Llanfairpwll, Anglesey. Mabel Leyshon was a 90-year-old widow. She was in the lounge of her bungalow watching television when she was set upon from behind. As she fought for her life, she was stabbed 22 times. The wound to her chest was nearly eight inches long and nine inches wide.

After Mabel Leyshon was dead, Hardman made several deep gashes in her legs. He drained her blood into a small saucepan taken from the kitchen and drank from it. Hardman removed her heart, wrapped it in newspaper, and placed it in a saucepan on a silver platter next to her body. He positioned two brass pokers at her feet in the shape of a crucifix, and placed a candlestick on the floor close to the body with a red candle balanced on the mantelpiece at the house.

Police were puzzled by the movement of Mrs Leyshon’s body from one chair, where she had been killed, to another. Police also said they were pursuing someone with considerable knowledge of physiology and the strength to open up a chest. Detectives consulted experts in the field of the occult and witchcraft and sought the help of psychological profilers.

Hardman had told a teenage German exchange student earlier that he believed she was one of a community of local vampires. He begged the student to bite his neck so he, too, could become a vampire. He pushed his neck against her mouth while he pleaded. Initially she thought he was joking, but later began screaming when he pushed her on to the bed and repeated the order: "Bite me." The girl said: "I was really afraid because he had this lunatic look in his eye," and that she had to summon help after Hardman became violent and insisted when she refused.

Hardman had described Llanfairpwll as a "perfect" location for vampires because many residents were elderly, and said that if they died nobody would notice. He told the court that his alleged fascination with vampires was no more than a "subtle interest." He denied any involvement in the murder. The prosecution said he was obsessed with vampires and the occult and believed he could achieve immortality by killing and drinking Mabel Leyshon’s blood, and they said he wanted to carry out the "grotesque" killing in order to provide a sacrifice.

Investigation

Police disclosed that the killer had painstakingly removed Mabel Leyshon’s heart and left it on the floor near the body. Officers planned to widen a programme in which more than 100 people in the district had given DNA samples. Det Supt Alan Jones of North Wales Police said officers wanted to trace the driver of a blue van seen by several people in the area. Neighbours described Mrs Leyshon as "a typical old lady living on her own" and said she had not been closely involved with her family since being widowed 13 years ago. Liz Lewis, chairman of the community council, said there had been fear in Llanfairpwll since the murder on Nov 24, adding: "That fear will remain until the person responsible is found," and said: "That fear will remain until the person responsible is found,".

The prosecution said DNA found at the murder scene matched that of blood found on a knife at Hardman’s home. Superintendent Alan Jones said: "The evidence against Hardman was carefully gathered, as a result of the inquiries into Hardman himself, a detailed forensic examination of both the murder scene and his home address, and finally by in-depth examination by the Forensic Science Service of the items seized." Superintendent Jones said: "The guilty verdict of the jury is confirmation beyond doubt that Mathew Hardman was responsible for her killing."

During the investigation, officers found books, magazines and internet material devoted to vampirism and the occult in Hardman’s bedroom. Police arrested him and he confessed to smoking cannabis at the time of the incident.

Arrest

Matthew Hardman was arrested in Llanfairpwll in January.

Trial

Matthew Hardman was tried at Mold Crown Court. He was found guilty by a unanimous verdict. He wept in the dock when the male foreman read out the verdict and his mother shrieked and sobbed in the public gallery.

Mr Justice Richards lifted an earlier order banning Hardman’s identification. After the verdict was reached, a teenage German exchange student whom Hardman had begged to bite his neck two months before the murder left the court building in tears and refused to comment on the verdict.

Roger Thomas, QC, prosecuting, suggested Hardman developed an overwhelming fascination with vampires. He believed they existed, believed they drank human blood, and believed most importantly that they could achieve immortality. The killer had become obsessed with two questions: "How do I become a vampire?" and "How do I become immortal?"

Hardman’s legal team brought no evidence of insanity. A medical issue was therefore not considered by the jury.

Hardman told the court that his alleged fascination with vampires was a "subtle interest". The court heard he smashed his way into Mabel Leyshon’s bungalow where she was watching television, and stabbed her 22 times.

Sentencing

Mr Justice Richards sentenced Matthew Hardman to be detained at Her Majesty’s pleasure, a life sentence. He ruled that Hardman should serve a minimum of 12 years for the murder, and he said: "It was planned and carefully calculated." He also said: "Why you, an otherwise pleasant and otherwise well regarded young man, should act in this way is difficult to comprehend." He stated: "You had hoped for immortality. All you achieved was to brutally end another person's life and the bringing of a life sentence upon yourself."

Mr Justice Richards said: "You have been convicted by the jury on the strength of the most compelling evidence. "The horrific nature of this murder was plain to all. It was a vicious and sustained attack on a vulnerable old lady in her own home, aggravated by the mutilation of her body after she had been killed. "It was planned and carefully calculated. "Why you should have acted in this way is difficult to comprehend but I am drawn to the conclusion that vampirism had indeed become a near obsession with you, that you really did believe that this myth may be true, that you did think that you would achieve immortality by the drinking of another person's blood and you found this an irresistible attraction."

He continued: "It may well seem incredible but in my judgment that is where the evidence leads. "One might hope for a psychological explanation for your behaviour but none is offered. "I must proceed on the basis that you are of sound mind and I must look for an explanation for your behaviour elsewhere. "You have specific learning difficulties but this can't account for it. "I can make an allowance for a degree of confused thinking and immaturity, for some childish fantasising, but the fact remains this was an act of great wickedness and one that you have not faced up to and and one for which you have not shown any remorse. "You hoped for immortality but all you have achieved is the brutal ending of another person's life and the bringing of a life sentence upon yourself."

Outcome

Matthew Hardman was sentenced to life in prison (minimum 12 years) on August 2, 2002, after being found guilty by a unanimous verdict at Mold Crown Court. The judge lifted an order banning Hardman’s identification after the verdict was delivered.

As Hardman was taken down from the dock, his mother leaned over the balcony and called down: "I love you, son".

Other details

Hardman had lived just a few yards away from Mabel Leyshon and had been her paper boy. Police said Mabel Leyshon could not be regarded as being obsessively religious and she attended her local church on the few occasions she left her home.