A man has been given a whole life order for murdering his pregnant partner and three children, aged between 11 and 13.
Damien Bendall, 32, who had previously admitted manslaughter, pleaded guilty to murdering his 35-year-old partner Terri Harris, her 11-year-old daughter Lacey Bennett, her son John Paul Bennett, 13, and Lacey’s friend Connie Gent, also 11. He committed the horrific acts at the home he shared with Ms Harris on Chandos Crescent, Killamarsh in Derbyshire in September 2021.
Sentencing Bendall for four counts of murder and one of rape on Wednesday (December 21), High Court judge Mr Justice Sweeney said family impact statements attested in moving terms to each victim who had been “so horrifically taken away” and their families’ “utter devastation.”
