Julia James: Callum Wheeler jailed for life for PCSO murder

Julia James supported victims of domestic violence in her work as a PCSO

An "angry, violent" and "strange man" who murdered police community support officer Julia James while she walked her dog has been jailed for life.

Callum Wheeler beat Mrs James to death with a metal bar after "ambushing" her near her Kent home in April 2021.

Her son described Wheeler, 22, as a "disgusting creature" who should never see the light of day.

Sentencing Wheeler at Canterbury Crown Court, Judge Justice Wall told him he would serve at least 37 years.

Mrs James, a mother-of-two, was found dead alongside her Jack Russell dog Toby in Ackholt Wood near her home in Snowdown on 27 April last year.

The court was told Mrs James was "subjected to a very violent and sustained assault to the head".

Wheeler admitted responsibility for the death on the first day of his trial in May. He was found guilty of murder a week later.

The jury took less than one hour and 10 minutes to find him guilty.

Callum Wheeler was a loner with few friends, police said

Mrs James' son, Patrick Davis, told the court his mother's life had been taken because of a "sick, twisted individual's strange desires".

He said: "He should never see the light of day again.

"My mum only wanted to walk her dog but had her life ended by this disgusting creature.

"I will not refer to him as a human being."

'I died too'

Mrs James' husband, Paul James, repeatedly broke down in tears as he told the court: "My life was finally complete when I married my soulmate.

"My hopes and dreams were taken."

He said that when his wife was murdered "I actually felt I died too".

Mr Justice Wall told Wheeler: "Your actions have not just served to end the one life prematurely but have also destroyed the lives of the whole of her family."

In court

By Jeremy Britton, BBC News, Canterbury Crown Court

The defendant is sitting in the dock with his head down after being carried into the dock wearing handcuffs by hospital staff.

Wheeler did not reply when asked his name - his defence barrister had to confirm his identity to the court clerk.

The prosecutor explained to the judge the metal bar the defendant carried was a jack used to move railway track.

Wheeler had never explained how it could have any innocent role in his day to day life, she said.

At Wheeler's sentencing hearing, prosecutor Alison Morgan QC said the finding of the defendant's DNA on the breast area of the white vest top Julia James was wearing meant the defendant "must have touched her."

"Given the location of that touching, it must have been sexual in nature," Ms Morgan said.

Wheeler was "highly sexualised" and had searched for words on the internet including "rape" just days before the attack, she said.

His conduct following his arrest suggesting he would go back into the woods and attack other women, she added.

Julia James's dog, a Jack Russell called Toby, was found by her side

Ms Morgan said: "An aggravating feature was the concern the attack had caused to about the safety of women.

"This was deliberate targeting of a lone female vulnerable because of her distance from others."

Mr Justice Wall told Wheeler: "The attack you launched on her was brutal and vicious.

"I am drawn on the evidence to the obvious conclusion that this was a not a spur of the moment aberration by you," he said.

"Rather it was an attack which was planned and thought through in advance."

He added: "You were there looking for a lone female victim and you were sexually motivated to do so."

Wheeler had been seen walking around the countryside with the weapon the day before Mrs James died, and in the days after as hundreds of police officers scoured the area.

At Wheeler's trial, Ms Morgan said the attack was "not a momentary and spontaneous act of violence".

It was planned "over many days and weeks", she said, and was "an ambush attack where the defendant intended to surprise his victim".

'Weird dude'

Ms Morgan told Wheeler's trial that on one occasion when he had visited Ackholt Wood before Mrs James's death, "he saw and was seen by Julia James herself".

Mrs James had been "aware of the presence of a strange male" and had described the man to her husband as a "really weird dude", she added.

After police appeals some 1,400 people came forward with information, together with 6,700 hours of footage from CCTV, dashcams and doorbells.

One of those to come forward was gamekeeper Gavin Tucker, who gave police a photo and dashcam footage of a man he had seen acting suspiciously in the area.

Wheeler was carrying a bag with what turned out to be the murder weapon covered with plastic bags.

He has been held at Broadmoor high security psychiatric hospital in Berkshire.

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