Andrew Burfield jailed for 32 years for murdering mum-of-two Katie Kenyon with an axe
17 November 2022, 11:07 | Updated: 17 November 2022, 12:00
A killer who claimed he had accidentally killed his ex-girlfriend when throwing an axe has been jailed for life with a minimum term of 32 years for her murder.
Listen to this article
Loading audio...
Andrew Burfield, 51, killed and buried 33-year-old Katie Kenyon in the Forest of Bowland, Lancashire, on April 22.
Her body was found a week later when he revealed its location to police.
Burfield, of Todmorden Road, Burnley, initially denied murder and told officers he had accidentally killed Ms Kenyon, from Padiham, when he threw an axe after she bet him he could not hit a can of Coke with it.
Read more: Builder admits killing his ex with an axe before dumping her body in a pre-dug grave
A post-mortem examination revealed the mother-of-two, who began a relationship with Burfield in 2019, suffered at least 12 head injuries.
Burfield changed his plea to guilty on Wednesday, the third day of his trial at Preston Crown Court.
He was sentenced to life by judge Mr Justice Goose on Thursday.
The court heard after her death he used Miss Kenyon's phone to send messages, drafted the month before her death, to her children and to himself.
On April 21 he travelled to Gisburn Forest with a set of ladders and spade he had borrowed from his parents.
He went back to the location the following day with Miss Kenyon, travelling in his Ford Transit van and stopping off at McDonald's on the way, the court heard.
The jury in his trial was told Burfield spent just over 42 minutes in the forest, where he killed her and buried her body.
