An alcoholic from Surrey who beat his ex-girlfriend to death and then told friends she "deserved it" has been jailed for life for her murder.
David Angel, 44, of Englefield Green, was told he must spend at least 14 years behind bars for killing 36-year-old Gabrielle King.
Miss King's mother Maureen Grant discovered her naked body in a pool of blood beside her bed on December 27 last yea
r.
She had been beaten so severely that her face was unrecognisable due to bruising and swelling, the Old Bailey heard.
Mrs Grant, who was too upset to attend court, said Miss King was her "little girl" and her memory of her has been forever stamped with the horrific image of her body.
Judge Peter Beaumont, the Recorder of London, told Angel: "You took the life of a woman in circumstances of great violence. You took her life in her own home where she was entitled to feel safe."
Miss King was said by friends and family to have been a "friendly, cheery and warm-hearted person", but both she and Angel were alcoholics who had previously been in an abusive on-off relationship.
Mark Dennis QC, prosecuting, said Mrs Grant went to see her daughter when she became concerned after not hearing from her.
A post-mortem examination showed that Miss King suffered "multiple blunt impacts" and photographs seen in court illustrated her "horrific injuries", which also included a bite mark to her left arm.
In a victim impact statement, Mrs Grant said her daughter was "lovely and wonderful" and she would miss her "terribly".
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