Man Murdered His Ex-Wife at Cemetery by Their Son’s Grave — On the 20th Anniversary of His Burial

A British man pleaded guilty to murdering his ex-wife at the cemetery where their late son had been buried exactly two decades earlier, according to a new report.

The Portsmouth News reported that Martin Suter pleaded guilty last year to murdering his ex-wife, Ann Blackwood, on July 24, 2023, and that a judge recently lifted a reporting restriction on the case.

The local news outlet reported that the couple’s 16-year-old son Christopher had been buried there after his death in 2003 — 20 years to the day of his mother’s murder.

PEOPLE has reached out to the Portsmouth Crown Court for comment but did not immediately receive a response on Wednesday, June 25, about the 68-year-old man’s plea.

Suter had been arrested and charged just days after Blackwood was killed, according to the BBC.

According to local police, Blackwood’s family said in a statement that her daughter, brothers, and friends were “absolutely devastated” by her death, according to BBC. “A loving, caring, kind-hearted mother and friend who was very popular in her local community, she was enjoying her retirement with an active lifestyle which included tennis, sailing, cycling and music,” the family said, via police, according to BBC.

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Blackwood, 71, was pronounced dead at the scene after Suter allegedly attacked her in the Crofton Cemetery in Stubbington, according to Metro UK.

Metro UK reported that the neighborhood where the cemetery is located is widely regarded as one with little crime. “You never expect something so horrific to happen so close to home, especially in such a friendly community,” one resident told the outlet the day of Blackwood’s murder.

The Portsmouth News also reported that Suter was a former local politician as a member of the Green Party, and ran for council election on three separate occasions.

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.