A man who stabbed his ex-girlfriend and her young autistic son to death in front of his own distressed baby has been jailed for life.
Daniel Boulton, 30, murdered Bethany Vincent, 26, and nine-year-old Darren Henson after walking 28 miles from Skegness to their home in Louth, Lincolnshire, on 31 May last year.
A judge said the killer, who was the subject of a restraining order after a complaint by Ms Vincent, committed the murders out of an “irrational fear” the youngster’s autism would somehow affect his own child.
Boulton “loitered for hours” outside his victims’ home in High Holme Road and “calmly, callously and efficiently” left his own nine-month-old son unharmed before fatally knifing Ms Vincent and Darren.
Mr Justice Pepperall warned the killer he may never be released as he sentenced him to life with a minimum term of 40 years at Lincoln Crown Court on Wednesday.
He told Boulton: “I’m sure that you targeted DJ (Darren) because of your hatred and you were motivated by his autism.
“I’m sure that you are a violent and very dangerous man, and you present an ongoing risk of further violence, and possibly even homicide.
“You killed with ruthless efficiency very soon after breaking into the house.
“You acted calmly, callously and efficiently...you intended to kill, you knew precisely what you were doing.
“You said many times to a number of different people that you wanted him dead and out of the way.”
The judge said there was “ample evidence” that Boulton was manipulative and controlling towards his ex-girlfriend.
“Your violence to Bethany Vincent was, I am satisfied, borne out of a desire to control her life and her thinking, and a deep sense of frustration when you did not get your own way,” he said.
“Whatever your precise intention when you started your hike to Louth and when you first arrived at Ms Vincent’s home, I am entirely satisfied that, having been denied entry at lunchtime, you deliberately loitered in Louth for some hours calmly awaiting her return with (Darren) in order that you could kill them both.”
Boulton denied the murders and tried to claim he was on “autopilot” at the time of the killings – but jurors dismissed his defence of loss of control.
He was also sentenced to 21 months for assaulting a police officer and 32 months for burglary, which will run concurrently.
Prosecutor Katherine Goddard QC read out four victim impact statements to the court, including one from Darren's father, Kieran Henson, who said: “Above all, the worst part is not being able to hear his voice any more.
“I will never be able to hear him shout ‘Daddy’.
“No sentence in the world will be enough for what he has done to my son and Beth.”
During the trial, a jury heard the relationship between Boulton and Ms Vincent, which had begun on the Tinder dating app, had “deteriorated” by the end of March 2019 and he was eventually ordered not to contact his ex-partner.
The prosecution said “persistent” Boulton had sent Ms Vincent nearly 900 messages over the bank holiday weekend, including one which said: “You destroyed my life and have the cheek to say I ruined yours.”
The killer had previously told a Salvation Army support worker he wanted to “wipe out the bloodline” of Ms Vincent’s family.
Boulton led police on a 24-hour manhunt after the murders before he was cornered by officers at a farm in Hallington, where he stabbed an off-duty police officer in the leg before being Tasered and arrested.
While on the run, he also stole food, alcohol and clothing and left a note saying “I, Daniel Boulton, take full responsibility for [the house number where the murders took place].”
Police have released helicopter footage of the dramatic moment Boulton was chased down at a nearby farm, which shows him scaling a fence and gesticulating at officers before he is arrested.
Bodycam video also shows the shoeless and sockless killer with ripped trousers being put into the back of a police van while he can be heard saying: “I know I’m an evil b****** but can you please get me some water?”
During the trial, Prosecutor Katherine Goddard QC revealed Ms Vincent and Darren, known as DJ, had been due to move to a new house just days after their deaths.
In her opening speech to the jury, she said despite two restraining orders, Boulton “continued to contact Bethany – by telephone, by text message, by social media messages, and by unannounced and uninvited visits to her home”.
“None of that contact was sought by Bethany and, in fact, only a few days after her and DJ were stabbed to death, they were due to move to a new house – to an address unknown to Mr Boulton,” she said.
“Social services became involved with Bethany and her family after her first complaint to the police of domestic violence in November 2020.
“Their concerns related only to the risk Mr Boulton presented to the family.
“He had, by then, expressed a hatred of Darren, a nine-year-old boy... who had been diagnosed with autism.”
Witnesses reported seeing Boulton running from an alleyway leading to the back of Ms Vincent’s property on the day of the murders.
“He seemed flushed, agitated, and called out to the witnesses to call an ambulance as someone had been stabbed inside,” Ms Goddard said.
“He then casually walked away, not waiting for the emergency services to arrive.”
Additional reporting by Press Association
