Peter Hicks
A man who admitted strangling his wife to death has been jailed for life at Bristol Crown Court.
Peter Hicks, 64, was told he would serve at least 13 years, after he pleaded guilty to the murder of his wife, Marlene, last year.
On November 15, 2011, Hicks called Avon and Somerset Police to say that he had killed his wife at their home in St George.
The murder came on n the day they were due to be evicted from their home in Air Balloon Road as the florist business they ran faced ruin.
The singer of Bristol-based blues band Loose Change had posted the words “some people are only alive because it is illegal to kill them,” on Facebook days before he strangled his wife with a dressing gown cord, left her wrapped in a duvet in the living room of their house, above, and drove his van towards Cornwall.
He refused to tell police where he was and a search began to find him. Within two hours, he was arrested in the Devon and Cornwall Police area.
Speaking after the sentencing, Detective Inspector Joe Goff said: “Last November Peter Hicks killed his wife and then abandoned her body in the house they shared, while he fled. He was swiftly arrested and now begins a long prison sentence.
“It is a horrific thing to take someone’s life and I hope Hicks comes to fully realise the seriousness of his actions and the devastating heartache he has caused to Marlene’s family. Nothing can bring Marlene back but I hope that the sentence today goes some way to help her family adjust to this terrible ordeal which has left them facing the future without a much-loved sister and aunt.”
Alivia Harvey, Marlene’s niece said: “The last six months have been very distressing and hearing the sentence today is realisation of how sadly Marlene’s life was taken. We would like to thank the police for all their hard work and the support they have given us. Marlene will be remembered with fondness and love.”
