'I am a monster. I am going to hell'

Full harrowing details revealed after Paul Butler murdered Claire Chick

An "evil", "murderous" and "cruel" man has been jailed for life over the murder of his estranged wife. Paul Butler viciously stabbed university lecturer Claire Chick to death outside her home on January 22, 2025.

Butler, WHO told police "I am a monster. I have seen hell, I am going to hell" after he was arrested at a hotel following the attack, had been abusing and stalking Claire, 48, after the pair had separated.

The pair had met at a time in Claire's life where she was described as "emotionally vulnerable". Her first marriage had ended in 2021 and her mother had recently died.

She moved into a property in Stangray Avenue and Butler lived next door and by the summer of 2022 they had begun a relationship, reports Plymouth Live.

Claire was described by those who knew her as "happy, bubbly, ambitious, attractive, wonderful, witty person" who excelled at her job as a lecturer with the university. She loved and was loved by her two daughters and was "besotted" by her five grandchildren, they said.

At that time she told others that she felt "safe" with Butler - he was tall, at 6ft 5ins while she was a petite 5ft 2ins.

The court was told that at first his constant contact was endearing and he "clearly loved her" but over time he became "overly protective".

The court was told that Butler, 53, had a way of making himself appear "vulnerable". In March 2023 he was rushed to hospital with a perforated bowel and there were concerns he would not survive. He came around with her at his side and he asked her to marry him. Claire later bought her own property on Stangray Avenue and Butler moved in with her.

Prosecutors that Butler later opened a café on Mutley Plain with one of Claire's daughters but the business did not flourish and later closed down.

The couple married on June 14, 2024 but by this stage Claire was already expressing doubts about their relationship and while on their honeymoon they had a huge argument, so much so that Claire wanted to return home early. Claire said she regretted getting married and that "everything was all about him".

In August 2024, she made it clear that she wanted to leave him. His responses varied from saying he loved her, to threatening her with violence, before apologising and then saying that he would attempt or threaten suicide.

He moved out in early September and moved to a shared address in the same street which he used to own. The court heard that on September 5, Claire spoke with a solicitor about Butler's worrying behaviour and about a divorce.

Prosecutor Joanna Martin, KC, said that on September 13, Butler attempted suicide by taking an overdose. Claire went to his aid and and he was taken to hospital where he expressed suicidal thoughts to mental health workers. While there, he also "expressed feelings of jealously and thought she [Claire] was seeing someone."

The court heard that Claire found it difficult to leave him and felt guilty and they attempted to work things out by attending couples' counselling, but it did not go well and he took another overdose. By this stage he had begun to accuse her of sleeping with other men, even while saying he was seeing other women to make her feel jealous.

On September 19 she contacted police for the first time, worried about his increasingly erratic behaviour. Around this time he flew to Kuala Lumpur but wrote to her saying he wanted half the house and half her pension. She gave a statement to police on September 26 - the first of six in all - where she expressed her fear about his behaviour. On his return from abroad he continued to make unwanted calls to her.

Her next statement to police was on October 14 and the third was on October 16 where she said she felt "stupid and embarrassed" at the situation, that it was affecting her work, she felt sick, she was avoiding going out and her friends were saying she was struggling to cope.

The court heard that on October 29 she withdrew her statements. At this time Butler was on bail with conditions and Claire explained how she felt she wanted to find a way to deal with the separation. However, by November she was said to be "really struggling" with Butler's ongoing behaviour.

She told friends and family she had tried to talk to him but he became more erratic. The court heard how Butler would post on his Facebook page that he "knew about her movements" and she became concerned that he was stalking her. She found that he would sit outside her house or email her at her work.

One such occasion was on November 22 when he went to her house and argued with her. He pushed her and she fell back, banging her leg and suffered a bruise. She asked him to leave and he was later arrested and bailed with conditions not to contact her.

By mid-December, she found him turning up at social functions she was at and she feared he had put a tracker in her car. She took the vehicle to a garage but staff could not find it. She plucked up the courage to confront him and he admitted it, removing and giving her the tracking device.

By mid-December, the court heard that Claire was "really struggling". She feared she could not get a divorce as they had not been married long enough. She did not think she could sell her home in Stangray Avenue because he had placed a restriction notice on the Land Registry.

Ms Martin said that Claire felt "that he had made her life hell". Despite her repeatedly telling him to leave her alone, he continued texting and threatening suicide.

By the end of December she had begun a new relationship with Paul Maxwell and Butler turned up at her address to confront him. Mr Maxwell said he was just returning a book but Butler later told friends he did not believe Mr Maxwell and claimed that he stood on a window ledge and saw Claire in a state of undress.

The court heard he phoned a friend and, clearly very angry. The call included him stating that he was so angry that "I will end up killing someone".

Claire gave another statement to police on December 31 saying that he had been watching her at her home and Butler was arrested on suspicion of stalking her. He was interviewed and released on bail with conditions. Despite this, he continued to stalk and harass Claire.

On January 10, 2025 Claire made her sixth - and final - call to police and gave a statement which she signed on January 21, the day before her death. In it she expressed her fear and told police: "I honestly feel that Butler will kill me if further action is not taken immediately. I am in fear of leaving my house." She told police she was fearful of what Butler had already done to her and what he could do in the future.

By this stage she had put her home on the market and moved into a flat in Kingdom Street at Millbay, moving in on January 18. However, it transpired that Butler was still stalking her and saw the removal van at her home - and followed it.

On January 20, Butler told his GP he was in a "better mood" and appeared more positive, but a friend who met him in a cafe said he seemed "run down", claiming that Claire had been "playing" with his head. He assured others that he would "never hurt" Claire and instead had thoughts of killing himself.

Ms Martin said that he called Danny Bamping asking for legal advice regarding Claire's property in Stangray Avenue. During the call - which was recorded - he admitted that he was jealous of Claire and had put the tracking device in her car. He went to call Claire a "f***ing slag".

Ms Martin noted that in that call he was "very angry" and admitted that "but for his daughter he would be up on a murder charge".

Around this time he amended his Facebook page to call himself "Stangray Strangler" and a screengrab of this was sent to Claire who responded: "OMG I'm at the police station... I wish he would just get on and put me out of my misery".

The court heard that on that day Claire contacted her solicitor about Butler breaching his bail conditions and expressing concern this had not been acted on by the police.

Ms Martin said that Claire told the solicitor that her life was "a living hell." She met with a friend at a lecture and said she was upset with the police, as they "weren't doing what they should". At that meeting she arranged for them to have a proper catch up on January 24.

On the day of the murder the court heard how Butler had gone to her workplace at Portland Villas and was captured on CCTV, wearing a hooded top. He later went home and changed into a camouflage jacket, baseball cap and picked up a rucksack. The court was shown a compilation of CCTV footage which followed him into the Starbucks cafe on Mutley Plain at 6.50pm. Ms Martin said that Butler had "evidently formulated a plan".

He was followed to the Sainsbury's store on Armada Way where he bought a pack of three kitchen knives. He entered the toilets where it is believed he placed them into his bag. He later told police he had ditched the two smaller knives and kept the largest. He was to later tell police that he had intended to "hurt or confront" Mr Maxwell or "frighten him, or slash his tyres".

CCTV showed him heading to the Hoe, near to where Claire now lived and where he believed Mr Maxwell would be. He spotted Mr Maxwell's car leaving the Waterfront pub car park and followed on foot, messaging a friend and writing "I love her simply too much to deal with it all", before admitting he had had "a few beers" and would "feel different tomorrow".

Claire left her apartment block, believing she was about to meet Mr Maxwell, but was instead confronted by Butler, armed with a knife. A witness later told police they saw a man with his hood up who seemed to grab a woman and "thrust at her multiple times". Another witness in a car, with dashcam recording, told police it appeared a man was looming over a woman and "very violently hitting her... really going for it" She said the woman was "cowering on the ground", with her hands up to protect her head.

By this time Mr Maxwell had got out of his car with his dog on a lead. He told police he heard a scream and thought it was students messing about. He heard a woman shouting "get off me" and he ran up steps to West Hoe Road. One witness said they saw a man "chest to chest with a female". Another person across the road shouted "get off her".

Mr Maxwell saw a man walking away from the woman and realised it was Butler, which made him realise the woman was Claire. However at this point, Butler then turned his attention to Mr Maxwell, and began to chase him along the street and around a van, shouting "I will f***ing do you too" before he eventually left the area.

Mr Maxwell immediately began to perform CPR on Claire and others came to assist him. An ambulance was called shortly after 9pm and Claire was taken to Derriford Hospital where, despite the best efforts of medical staff, she was pronounced deceased at 9.46pm.

Ms Martin told the court to recall the statement from one witness that they saw a man "really going for it". At the hospital, Claire was found to have suffered more than 20 knife blows to her body. She said there was "no chance of survivability" and it was "almost certain" that Claire died at the scene.

A post mortem recorded 23 stab wounds, with some forceful enough to go through her ribs and sternum. The deepest wound was recorded as 10cm deep. Ms Martin said the post mortem report also noted "multiple defensive injuries".

Butler - who later told police his target that night was Mr Maxwell and that after grabbing Claire's hand he did not recall anything else or even chasing Mr Maxwell - then dumped his camouflage jacket. He went to the Sainsbury's store at Marsh Mills and bought a dressing gown, which he used to stem a deep cut on his hand, a bottle of Scotch and neurofen, telling shop staff he'd cut himself with a knife at home. He tried to book into the Premier Inn at Marsh Mills, but they were fully booked.

At this time he received a message from a friend asking how he was. He replied "Better than Claire". He later added "I'm pretty certain she's dead" and "I meant to get him [Mr Maxwell] but f***ed up. I killed her. I tried to get him but he ran".

Ms Martin said Butler then intimated in the reply that he was going to overdose, telling the friend that it was "better than a life sentence".

The next day Butler went to a Tesco and an Aldi, where he bought more painkillers as well as a change of clothes. He then took a train to Liskeard and a taxi to another Premier Inn where he booked in. At 7.40pm police arrived and battered their way through a barricaded door, finding Butler who had clearly been sick. He was rushed to Derriford Hospital having taken an overdose and underwent surgery on his hand. On January 24 he was charged with murdering Claire.

The court heard that Butler had told police at the hotel: "She trusted me and she loved me and I can’t believe I have done this. She has children and grandchildren – I have destroyed so many lives, not just one. I don’t care about me. I don't have a priest or access to a priest. I need to say how it is - I am a monster. I have just seen hell, I am going to hell. This is what I am going to look forward to."

Ms Martin told the court that Butler had previous convictions, between 1986 and 1988 when he was between 15 and 17 he had convictions for offences "including sexual offences against girls and women" as well as an assault occasioning actual bodily harm.

Claire's eldest daughter, Bethany Hancock-Baxter took to the witness box to read out her victim impact statement. As Butler sat and wiped his eyes, evidently crying, she told the court "I want this evil man to listen to me". She said he "wasn't ever genuine - my mum would do anything for anyone - unlike you". She said Claire had "five gorgeous grandchildren" which Butler was allowed to be involved with and spend precious time with, but "jealousy got the better of you".

She said Butler's mindset was clearly a case of "If I can't have her, no-one can".

Bethany said she wanted him to know the "anger I have for you" at the "vile, malicious act that you did". She said that at some point in the future the grandchildren would have to be told what happened to Claire and it would "begin a whole new grieving process again". She said she wanted him to know what a "vile, evil murder you are" adding "my mum is gone because you couldn't live with your guilt, anger and jealousy".

Lydia Peers, Claire's younger daughter, said Butler was a "selfish man" whose "cold blooded hands caused all this pain". She said the family had welcomed him with open arms and had "put aside your past". She said he had "lost" his "control" of Claire and effectively thought that if he could not have her anymore, then no-one else could "even her amazing grandchildren."

She told him: "You didn't love her, ever. Stabbing her 23 teams is not love. You're a murderer. This was not an accident. This was not a mistake. You made sure she was gone."

Mr Maxwell took to the witness box where he turned and fully faced Butler as he sat in the dock. Whereas when Claire's daughters read out their statements, he appeared to cry and wipe tears from his eyes, as Mr Maxwell began to read out his victim impact statement, Butler appeared uninterested, looking around at the ceiling, ignoring Mr Maxwell's attention.

However, at one stage, as Mr Maxwell paused looking up from his papers to look at Butler, Butler stared back. For several seconds Mr Maxwell remained silent as Butler glared back at him, his face stern. No-other sound was heard in the courtroom as the pair scowled at each other, until Mr Maxwell returned to his written statement. However, Butler continued to glower at Mr Maxwell and when the statement was completed, Mr Maxwell walked past the dock, the two men still glaring at each other until, suddenly, Butler barked out a comment about being winked at.

A statement was then read out to the court by Ms Martin from Alan Butler, father of Claire. He wrote of how he heard the awful news that his "beautiful daughter" was "brutally and savagely murdered" by an "evil person who took her life". He described her as "generous and full of fun", "a good person who had a purpose to her life", with an "infectious laugh".

He wrote of his concerns for her when she called him in September 2024 following her separation from Butler where she said "in her own words she was in a living hell". He said she told him she had called the police for help "several times" explaining to them that she was being followed and spied on. He said it "broke my heart over and over again" to hear the stress and torment in her voice.

He said Butler has "brutally killed the most beautiful human being" and had damaged so many lives, of her children, her grandchildren, friends and family. He told Butler he had "murdered my daughter and broken my heart... and you will go straight to hell".

He said Claire's work teaching students was recognised internationally and the "world was a poorer place" because of Butler's actions.He wrote "How could you value a human life so cheaply. I rage with anger at what you have done."

He called Butler an "excuse of a man" saying Claire was small and did not stand a chance against him.

Noting the other incidents of violence against women by current and former male partners he wrote: "There are too many men who take the lives of women because they can't have what they want. They are evil. You are evil."

Butler's barrister Adam Vaitilingam KC, said his role was to offer mitigation, but admitted that there was "very limited amount we can advance", noting that a life sentence was "inevitable". He remarked that Butler would be an old man before he was even considered for licence.

However he said Butler did not agree with every detail advanced by the CPS regarding the months leading up to the murder. He said Butler was "adamant that he did not go to the address intending to attack" Claire and that "somebody else was the target of his anger."

Mr Vaitiligam remarked that Butler had at least chosen to attend court rather than take the "coward's way out" and had offered an early guilty plea as well as shown remorse for his actions.

Passing sentence, Judge Robert Linford said: "The Victim Personal Statements read to the court set out in graphic detail the effects of your savagery. You did not just hurt and kill Claire, you have caused untold harm and misery to her family and friends."

He said Claire's brother had spoken of her legacy in his victim impact statement, saying it would be "valued for years by those she knew and taught". Judge Linford said the loss of Claire had left "an irreplaceable void in the lives of so many people. You are responsible for all this suffering by so many and you alone."

He said Butler had started to "excessively influence" Claire's life, adding: "In short, there were signs that you were controlling her. Those were warning signs of what lay beneath the surface of your personality."

He told Butler: "There is absolutely no doubt at all that whilst there were occasions when the two of you met and things were cordial, overall the story is one of obsession and control."

He noted how Claire had contacted a solicitor about Butler breaching his bail conditions "and she expressed concerns that those breaches had not been acted upon by the police."

Judge Linford reminded the court as to the attack, which was described by witnesses as Butler "really going for it" as Claire cowered on the ground. He said: "It was on any view a frenzied and deliberately murderous attack."

He said the attack involved "sustained and excessive violence towards [Claire]" adding "This was a frenzied attack, I repeat, involving the infliction of a minimum of 23 stab wounds. It was nothing less than sheer murderous brutality."

He said that Butler had undergone a psychiatric report ahead of the sentencing who found that there was "no evidence of a psychotic episode or current mental disorder". He said he had read a letter Butler had written and it was "soaked through with remorse for what you have done and an understanding of the harm that you have done to her family and friends."

He concurred with Butler's advocate that "if you are ever released from the sentence that I am about to pass you will be a very old man."

Judge Linford told Butler he would serve a life sentence with a minimum tariff of 27 years, minus 88 days already spent on remand. He was handed an 18 month sentence, to run concurrently, for the possession of the bladed article.

Butler left the dock, appearing nonchalant as he walked through the door, without looking at anyone sitting in the public gallery.

Judge Linford then, through Ms Martin KC, addressed the family of Claire Chick saying that he wanted to pay tribute to the quiet and dignified way they had demonstrated when they were listening to the awful facts of the case.