The family of a woman murdered by her partner say he “betrayed her love and trust” and is not allowing her the dignity of a proper burial.
Mark Brown has been found guilty of murdering Leah Ware, 33, and 34-year-old Alexandra Morgan six months apart last year.
Brown, 41, had been in an “on again, off again” relationship with Ms Ware since 2018 after originally meeting her as an escort for sex.
But on Thursday he was found guilty of murdering her, after tensions grew when Ms Ware pressured him to leave his partner of 14 years, Lisa Clark.
Andy Wolstenholme, Detective Chief Inspector at Sussex Police, read out a statement written jointly by Ms Ware’s family on the steps outside Hove Crown Court where the trial was held.
The family thanked Brown’s second victim, Alexandra Morgan, and said that without her the truth about Ms Ware may not have been discovered as quickly.
The statement said: “Leah was a kind, loving, generous and beautiful young woman who should have had her whole life ahead of her.
“She loved and cherished her children and always wanted to do her best for them.
“She adored her animals and was devoted to her two dogs Lady and Duke and her horse Bertie.
“Leah did encounter challenges in her later life, but she always tried to see the good in everything and everyone.
“She was very trusting and cared deeply, and it was those qualities in Leah that Mark Brown exploited for his own gratification.
“He betrayed Leah’s love and trust, and even now he won’t allow her the dignity and respect of a proper burial or allow us to have the answers we so desperately need and deserve.
“We are truly devastated that Leah has been ripped from our lives in such inhumane circumstances. It breaks our hearts to think of what she went through in the time leading up to her murder.
“Leah will live on in the thoughts and memories of her family and friends and will never be forgotten. We will all make sure that Leah’s children grow up knowing who their mummy was.
“For people that didn’t know our Leah; she was fun, with a fabulous sense of humour and mischief.
“Our world will be a darker place without Leah who was a loving mother, daughter, granddaughter, sister, niece, cousin and friend.
“We would like to pay tribute to Alexandra because without her the truth may not have been uncovered as quickly. Our thoughts will always be with Alex’s family.”
