“She had time for everyone and had a beautiful soul.” She had travelled the nation in search of love and been married three times. Although she yearned for the fantasy, it ultimately brought her to her murderer.”
An violent partner killed a mother who “radiated love” in her “dream” cottage, accusing her of killing herself while she struggled to survive.
In August 2023, during an incident at their home on Main Street in the village of Sprotbrough, near doncaster, Paul Cousans, 52, stabbed Kelli Bothwell, 53, twice in the back.
The two blows, which punctured her lung, spleen, and kidney, were separated by a few minutes, and after Kelli was able to dial 999, a police call handler heard the whole thing.
During the terrifying tape, the operator overheard Cousans saying to Kelli, a community carer trainee, “you have destroyed my life” and “you die, I die.” At Sheffield Crown Court today, Cousans—who stabbed himself through the chest but lived—was given a life sentence. He entered a guilty plea to murder.
Despite having a lengthy history of domestic abuse and coercive behaviour towards both women, as well as a prior conviction for attacking his ex-wife, he managed business development for the well-known insurance company AXA, earning a good salary.
The couple, who both drank a lot, had spent the evening at a wine bar in Sprotbrough on 5 August. Although they were originally in ‘high spirits’ upon their return, neighbours subsequently reported hearing loud thumps and screams coming from the residence. Kelli Bothwell placed the 15-minute 999 call at 8 p.m. from her cell phone.
After giving an initial account of her arm injuries, Kelli cried out that she had been stabbed in the back and that the knife was still inside her. As Kelli was losing consciousness, Cousans said to the call handler, “I love her but she has screwed me over tonight,” over the phone to one of his two daughters by his ex-wife. The operator then overheard Cousans telling her that he loved her and was going to end his life.
Kelli pleaded with the operator for aid, but Cousans remained silent and was overheard saying, “Kelli, look me in the eye.” I hope you understand the impact you had tonight. You die, and I die.
The call terminated when Kelli yelled that she had been stabbed twice in the back. Officers discovered her on the patio in the garden, brandishing an eight-inch kitchen knife with Cousans straddling her. “We go together,” he said to the police.
Although Cousans’ injuries were attended to, they were all self-inflicted. Kelli was not resuscitated.
According to the evidence presented to the court, Cousans had a violent past that included knocking his pregnant ex-wife out by strangling her. She met Kelli in 2020, and after a year, she started having problems and told others that he had abused her. She reported Cousans to the police in July 2021 and frequently displayed apparent bruises at work. After the couple got back together, they decided against pursuing charges, and Kelli informed the police as much, which resulted in the case being dismissed.
According to friends, Cousans restricted Kelli’s food intake, confined her in the house, checked her phone every day, and wouldn’t let her go shopping alone. She had quit chat groups and erased her social media profiles.
Megan van Delft, her daughter, presented a moving victim impact statement to the court. Megan claimed that only weeks after moving to Doncaster to be nearer to their mother, who was murdered, she and her sister Rhyanne, who together have three children, had to clean up their mother’s blood from the “dream” cottage she had moved into.
“She had time for everyone and had a beautiful soul.” She had travelled the nation in search of love and been married three times. She was drawn to the fairytale, but it ultimately brought her to her murderer. Although her Main Street cottage was filled with Paul’s belongings, very little of her personality was seen on the inside of it during that story. Although the rent was exorbitant and the tenancy was in her name, Paul had complete authority over her.
The two daughters of Cousans received their sisters’ condolences for the effect the murder had had on them.
The defence attorney for Cousans acknowledged that although he was on suicide watch in jail, he did not have a mental illness. According to him, the murder was not planned; rather, it was the result of a “loss of control.”
Additionally, PC Jessica Whitton, a police officer, received praise for her “composure and good training” in managing resuscitation efforts at the scene while her coworkers were in shock.
Recorder of Sheffield, Jeremy Richardson KC, imposed a minimum sentence of 19 years in jail, stating: “This was a deliberate and brutal attack.” It was targeted; it was not frantic. You had Kelli lying there dying in front of you, and you did nothing to save her. You stabbed a woman again after watching her brutally die in front of you. One really unsettling aspect of this case is your ability to remain composed and matter-of-fact.
“Kelli had endured an unending series of violent episodes and emotional abuse on a regular basis. You had taken control of her emotions, and she was unable to break free of your tight hold. You had filled her to the brim with poison.
“This was ingrained behaviour, and you are a truly wicked individual.”
PC Whitton was subsequently called to the witness box by Recorder Richardson, who informed her that she would get a commendation from the chief constable of South Yorkshire Police for her “impressive piece of police work in very difficult circumstances.”
