Man who murdered sister during argument is jailed

Kevin Shepherd told his mother "I'm sorry" after stabbing his sister Sharon Butler to death

A man who stabbed his sister to death during an argument at their mother's home has been jailed for a minimum of 13-and-a-half years.

Kevin Shepherd, 55, attacked Sharon Butler at the house in Leigh-on-Sea, Essex, after she told him to "go and get a job".

Police found Ms Butler, 64, under a tarpaulin in the front garden when they arrived nine minutes after being contacted on 7 November 2023.

Shepherd admitted murder and was given the life sentence at Basildon Crown Court

The defendant wept in the dock as a statement written by his family read: "We want Kevin to know we will never forgive him".

Sharon Butler had been eating dinner before her brother attacked her

Simon Spence KC, prosecuting, said Ms Butler arrived home from work at about 19:15 GMT and sat down to eat her dinner.

An argument started when Shepherd, who was unemployed, accused her of not helping to pay for a bathroom.

Their mother, Maureen, requested they both went outside as she did not want to hear them arguing, Mr Spence said.

'I'm sorry'

"After they went out, she heard someone who she believed to be Kevin come back into the kitchen and open the cutlery drawer sharply, causing it to rattle," the prosecutor said, adding that Shepherd then took a knife outside.

"The last thing Maureen heard was Sharon shouting 'mum' and then Kevin came in the house and said 'I'm sorry'."

Shepherd called the police to the property, in Whitehouse Meadows, and an officer found Ms Butler's body under a tarpaulin.

The knife was found stabbed into a plant pot and Shepherd was arrested, the court heard.

Shepherd dialled 999 after the fatal attack in the front garden of the house he shared with his mother and sister

A post-mortem examination found Ms Butler had sustained 32 injuries to her body, of which 16 were stab wounds.

In a statement read to the court the family said they would "never forgive Kevin".

"This catastrophic event has ripped apart the fabric of our whole family," they said.

Tracy Ayling KC, mitigating, said it was a "frenzied attack" but one born out of "a loss of control" with no premeditation.

Judge Samantha Leigh said she accepted Shepherd had mental health problems and had been "delusional for a large part of his life".