In a heartbreaking incident, a mother who stabbed her newborn baby girl to death with scissors and discarded her in a kitchen bin has died while in prison.
Rachel Tunstill, who was serving her sentence at HMP Styal in Cheshire, passed away on August 1, 2023.
The circumstances surrounding her death remain unknown, and the Prisons and Probation Ombudsman will conduct an investigation as standard procedure.
The tragic story began in January 2017, when Tunstill gave birth to her daughter Mia Kelly while her unsuspecting boyfriend played video games in the adjacent room.
Deceptively, she told him that she was experiencing a miscarriage and asked for scissors, but instead, she brutally stabbed her baby girl 14 times right after her birth.
It was revealed that the newborn was alive after birth but succumbed to the injuries inflicted on her back, neck, and chest.
Initially, Tunstill was found guilty of murder in June 2017, and she received a life sentence. However, the Court of Appeal quashed the conviction a year later, suggesting that lesser charges should have been considered.
A retrial took place, leading to her second conviction for murder in February 2019, resulting in another life sentence with a minimum of 17 years.
During the sentencing, Mr. Justice King remarked that the act was a sustained and frenzied attack on a particularly vulnerable victim due to her young age.
Instead of providing care and comfort, Tunstill tragically chose to end her daughter's life. The judge highlighted the concealment of the body and the indignity in which it was disposed of as aggravating factors.
Tunstill, a graduate with a master's degree in forensic psychology, put the baby's body in a plastic carrier bag, then another bag, and finally into the kitchen bin.
Astonishingly, she displayed no remorse or emotion for the heinous act committed. Following the crime, she calmly watched television while her partner continued playing video games.
The motive behind such a horrific act remains unclear, leaving many puzzled and saddened by the tragic tale of a mother and her newborn daughter.
In another tragic event, a boyfriend has been arrested in connection with the murde of his IT specialist girlfriend. See detailed story here
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