A double killer freed from prison after being deemed a low risk by the Parole Board has been found guilty of murdering a charitable neighbour who gave him odd jobs to help his rehabilitation.
Brian Whitelock, 57, who was released after serving 18 years for the double killing, tortured and murdered Wendy Buckney, 71, at her home in the village of Clydach, near Swansea in south Wales.
A relative of Buckney, who was a retired riding school instructor, tried to persuade her not to help Whitelock because they feared he was dangerous but she insisted: “Everyone deserves a second chance.”
Whitelock was jailed in 2001 for battering a friend, Nicholas Morgan, to death with a pickaxe handle or hammer at a house in Swansea after a drink and drug-fuelled argument. He then set fire to his body to try to cover up evidence, killing his own brother, Glenn, who died of smoke inhalation after falling asleep in the house.
In 2018 Morgan’s sister, Gemma Long, launched a campaign to try to stop him being released back to Swansea. But he was freed after an offender assessment review in 2019 concluded that the likelihood of him committing another serious offence was low, with the caveat that the risk could increase if he lapsed into drug and alcohol misuse.
Whitelock moved in opposite Buckney and she employed him to do odd jobs in her flat after saying he deserved a second chance.
Jurors heard that in August 2022 he attacked Buckney with a knife, table leg and wooden shelf and sexually assaulted her.
Whitelock was seen by neighbours leaving Buckney’s home after the attack wearing only boxer shorts and covered in blood. He told them: “I’ve killed Wendy. I don’t know why, she was good to me.”
When he was arrested he said he had tortured Buckney, who had mobility issues, and a postmortem found she had too many injuries for pathologists to count.
It took the jury less than half an hour to find Whitelock guilty of murder. He had defended himself during the trial but the judge, Mr Justice Griffiths, asked him if he wanted a barrister for his sentencing hearing.
Whitelock replied “what’s the point?” and shouted to the jury “I hope you all suffer a brain injury,” apparently a reference to his claim that he could not remember what happened because he had twice suffered head injuries in the weeks before the attack.
The judge ordered him to be removed from the court, apologised to the jury for the “disgraceful behaviour” and told them they were safe.
The jury had heard that Whitelock may have been taking up to 30 “street diazepam” tablets and drinking a crate of lager a day as well as smoking cannabis at the time of the murder.
When he gave evidence, Whitelock told the jury that Buckney was a “lovely woman” who had paid him for jobs such as laying a patio and gardening.
The defendant said: “I have no idea why I was at Wendy’s or what I was doing. It’s horrible what’s happened. I’m sorry. I can’t forgive myself. I expect to spend the rest of my life in jail, I deserve to. Why did I do that to Wendy, someone who was so nice to me?”
Whitelock pleaded guilty to manslaughter by diminished responsibility and claimed he was acting out of character due to a brain injury. He denied murder.
Christopher Rees KC, prosecuting, said Whitelock’s previous convictions showed a “propensity to use explosive and disproportionate violence”, especially when under the influence of drugs.
Whitelock claimed he had “kept his head down” after being released from prison in 2019 but in fact he was convicted of the battery of a supermarket worker in Swansea in December 2020 and returned to prison before being released again.
Swansea crown court heard Buckney was loved by her 16 nieces and nephews and two adult stepchildren and had taught hundreds of children how to ride.
In a statement, Buckney’s family said: “Wendy was a very much loved sister and aunty whose kindness, laughter, and spirit touched the lives of so many. Our lives will never be the same without her, but we will continue to honour her memory every day.”
Whitelock will be sentenced on 20 December.
