The woman’s daughter said her mom, who died two years after the attack, “could not bear to look at herself”; her killer, meanwhile, was found sleeping at his mother’s house — covered in soot, with apparent burns in his booking photo.
A UK man who admitted to intentionally setting his girlfriend on fire will spend at least 20 years behind bars for the “horrific” crime, after her death two years following the incident.
On Monday, Lincolnshire Police announced Leigh Pateman, 45, was sentenced to a minimum term of 27 years in prison for the murder of Ellen Marshall. He was already locked up after pleading guilty to causing grievous body harm with intent, but, following her death, the charge was upped to murder. He again pleaded guilty.
With time served, Pateman is eligible for parole in 23 1/2 years.
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The Horrific Attack on Ellen Marshall
The initial incident went down on April 22, 2021.
Per police, Pateman picked up a can of gasoline during an argument with Marshall, his then-girlfriend, and poured it into her lap while she was sitting in a chair. “He then ignited it with his lighter,” said authorities.
According to the BBC, the court heard that Pateman previously threatened to kill Marshall by lighting her on fire, but she didn’t believe him. When authorities arrived at the scene of the inferno, they said they only realized she was there after hearing “a gurgling sound.”
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She was found in “extreme pain” on the floor of the living room, which was filled with smoke. Per prosecutor Sarah Knight, “There was little hair left on her head. Her face was so badly burnt and scorched it was difficult to make out her facial features. Her body was scorched where her clothes would have been.”
Pateman allegedly fled the scene by bike and was found in bed at his mother’s home, with police noting he was “covered in soot.” His booking photo (above) also appears to show soot and burns to his nose and face.
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Attack Aftermath
Police say Marshall was taken to the hospital with “between 80 per cent and 90 per cent burns to the top half of her body,” before she reportedly “spent the rest of her life in hospitals and care homes.”
A victim impact statement from Marshall’s daughter, Paige Clarke, was read in court — saying her mother “could not bear to look at herself for a year” following the incident.
“She became weaker and weaker as the days went by, but even then she was so strong of heart,” said Clarke. “The physical, mental and emotional pain that my mother had to go through is almost impossible to put into words.”
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Marshall died on March 11, 2023 — nearly two years after the initial attack — with Judge Simon Hirst saying in court, “The cause of Ms Marshall’s death was pneumonia as a result of the injuries inflicted upon her by you.”
“Ms Marshall endured the most excruciating pain and suffering from the injuries you inflicted upon her,” added Hirst.
In a statement, Detective Inspector Andy McWatt added, “This was a truly shocking and barbaric attack. I cannot begin to imagine how much fear she must have felt, and how painful the rest of Ellen’s life was.”
“Her family had to watch someone they love suffer from terrible injuries for almost two years,” he concluded. “I hope that they can feel some measure of closure that her killer has been sentenced for that crime.”
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