Brentford Man Found Guilty of Murder

'Obsessively jealous' Christopher Campbell faces lengthy sentence

Christopher Campbell of Greenlawn Lane, Brentford has been found guilty at the Old Bailey of the murder of Alison Hill at their home in October 2006.

He had been mentally and physically abusive to her during the relationship and in 2005 Alison moved to a refuge following an assault that required hospital treatment. In early 2006 she returned from the refuge and by the end of the summer she had resumed her relationship with Campbell.

Campbell, aged 45, who worked in a shed factory, had claimed he was provoked into stabbing Alison who worked at a nursery in Twickenham. He said that he had made contact with other men through the internet and encourage them to have sex with Ms. Hall while he watched. In an attempt to avoid a murder conviction he had told the court that Alison taunted him about sleeping with other men and, as a result, he had stabbed her 18 times.

After that he had a shower and took money and car keys from her purse left the flat leaving her two young sons asleep. He drove away before stopping in Park Royal to report the incident to the emergency services.

DI Justin Davies said, "Campbell claimed to love Alison, but was obsessively jealous, and abused her both physically and mentally throughout their four year relationship, seeking to control all aspects of her life. Because of her love for Campbell, Alison allowed him back into her life enabling him to continually mistreat and manipulate her emotions. This is tragically a classic example of how domestic violence can escalate culminating in death."

He praised Alison's family for their conduct during the trial and urged anyone who is in a violent or abusive relationship to seek help from the police.

The family issued a statement after the verdict in which they said, "We have sat through and listened to almost every word spoken during this distressing trial. We have felt that our beloved Alison has herself been on trial during the past few weeks.As a very private and close family we have all heard evidence that has shocked and embarrassed us. We know that Alison herself would never have wanted any of us to know this.Alison was a kind and caring person. She saw good in everyone and was a devoted mother. Christopher Campbell has left two beautiful children without their mother. He has ensured that our families memories of her have been overshadowed by what we have heard. He has arrogantly and outrageously refused to take any blame for her murder. He has instead laid the blame for Alison's death squarely at her door. We ask that our daughter now be allowed to Rest in Peace and we would like to continue to protect her memory for her two sons."

December 12, 2007