NEED TO KNOW
- Ewan Methven killed his girlfriend 21-year-old Phoenix Spencer-Horn in November 2024
- He did not report the murder until two days later
- During those two days, Methven pretended over text messages to Spencer-Horn’s mother that she was alright
A man will spend the rest of his life behind bars for decapitating his girlfriend in 2024, after which he spent two days scrolling through her phone for pornographic material, per authorities.
Ewan Methven, 27, pleaded guilty to killing 21-year-old Phoenix Spencer-Horn in their home in the Scottish town of East Kilbride on Nov. 16, Police Scotland said in a statement last month.
On Nov. 18, police found Spencer-Horn’s body in the apartment and subsequently arrested Methven in connection with her killing.
Investigators learned that on the day of the killing, he had texted Spencer-Horn that her work was making him “lonely” while she was on her shift, the BBC reported.
He later returned home, ordered food and waited for her to come back, per the outlet. Spencer-Horn’s mother reportedly received a text message from her that evening, claiming the couple were having dinner.
Late that evening, authorities say, he strangled and stabbed Spencer-Horn before decapitating her.
For two days, he drove around in his deceased girlfriend’s car and scrolled through her phone looking up pornographic material 170 times and trying to buy cocaine, prosecutors said, according to the BBC.
During these two days, Methven also pretended in text messages to the victim’s mother that she was “alive and well.”
On Nov. 18, he called police to report the killing, claiming that he was on cocaine and “blacked out” during the murder, the BBC reported. After investigators arrived and found Spencer-Horn ‘s body, Methven told them he had “tried to dismember her” because he “could not stay here with her like that,” the BBC reported.
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During the sentencing, the judge told Methven: “The way you treated this innocent young woman after her death meant that her family did not even have the comfort of saying goodbye to her.”
If you are experiencing domestic violence, call the National Domestic Violence Hotline at 1-800-799-7233, or go to thehotline.org. All calls are toll-free and confidential. The hotline is available 24/7 in more than 170 languages.
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