Trevor Dunkley, 66, has pleaded guilty to the murder of Patricia Lashley, a mother of seven who disappeared near her home in Dudley, West Midlands, in September 1998. He also admitted a charge of preventing the lawful burial of Ms Lashley. The guilty pleas were entered at Wolverhampton Crown Court on Friday, where Dunkley showed no emotion in the dock.
Dunkley, of Himley Road, Dudley, appeared before Judge Michael Chambers KC. His barrister, Balbir Singh, explained that the charges were based on a police interview. When asked by the judge if the victim's body had been found, Mr Singh replied: "No, because this is 28 years ago and the body was put into the cellar downstairs. It decomposed. When he was moving about nine months to a year later the skeleton was disposed of into the bins."
Confession to police after 28 years
West Midlands Police said Dunkley and the victim – his partner – shared a home in Hall Street, Dudley, at the time of the killing. The force stated: "Patricia was reported missing and her case was still being investigated when one of our officers recently went to speak to Dunkley. During this visit, he made the shock confession, telling the officer 'I killed her, I'm sorry'."
Dunkley was then arrested and interviewed. He told officers that the pair had met while Ms Lashley was pregnant and living in Dudley. On the day of the murder, he had returned home after a night shift and attacked her with his fists while she was in bed, saying the "red mist" had descended. He was 38 at the time.
Body kept in cellar for a year
After the murder, Dunkley told detectives he took Patricia's child to Social Services, claiming she had left him and abandoned her baby. According to his confession, he later covered her body with bedding and took it to the cellar, where it lay for around a year before he disposed of her remains in household waste over several weeks. Because of this, police said it is unlikely Patricia's remains will ever be found.
Dunkley decided to confess nearly 30 years after Patricia's death because he thought police were "onto him", according to his account. Ms Lashley was reported missing by her sister in June 1999, and regular appeals were made in the years following her disappearance.
Court hearing and sentencing
Both charges admitted by Dunkley covered a period between September 22 and September 28, 1998. He was remanded in custody and will be sentenced on November 6. Judge Chambers addressed Dunkley at the end of the hearing, saying: "You have had the courage to plead guilty to these matters and will get appropriate credit (for pleading guilty) in due course. I am required to set the minimum term that you will have to serve before the Parole Board consider your case. As you are aware, the sentence for murder is life imprisonment. I am going to order a pre-sentence report. It's in your interests to co-operate with the preparation of that report. In the meantime you must remain in custody."
Several members of the victim's family were present in court to see Dunkley enter his guilty pleas. Police believe Dunkley knew Ms Lashley, who was known locally as Pat or Jade, lived in Hall Street, and had links to London, Wales, Newcastle and Scotland. She also used the names Vanessa and Tricia, as well as the surname Bradford.
Police statement on the case
Detective Inspector Michelle Cordell, from the West Midlands' Homicide Unit, said: "This was a truly harrowing case in which a young mother was murdered inside the home she shared with her partner and her baby. Trevor Dunkley is the only living person who truly knows what happened that day. What we do know is that, by his own admission, he subjected Patricia Lashley to a sustained and violent assault which led to her death."
The detective added: "His actions afterwards are unspeakably cruel. It is difficult for anyone to comprehend how he could live for so long, knowing what he had done and within the same location he had deposited her body. Not only did he deprive Patricia of a lawful or decent burial, he robbed her family of the opportunity to lay her to rest. For decades, they have had to live without answers and with the hope that one day she would return. There can be no justification for his actions."
