Bailey Heywood, 23, ‘viciously attacked’ her boyfriend Dale Bond, 45, by stabbing him in the chest – before fleeing the scene as he bled to death in his own flat
A young woman who ‘viciously’ stabbed her 45-year-old boyfriend to death with a kitchen knife has been jailed for seventeen years.
Bailey Heywood, 23, was handed a life sentence with a minimum tariff of 17 years and 181 days to be served before she can be considered for parole. She was caught on March 13, 2024, when Thames Valley Police received a call from a concerned member of the public, who believed a man had been seriously injured.
Officers rushed to Mullein Road, Bicester, where they found Dale Bond in the lounge of the flat he lived in, with stab wounds. Paramedics from South Central Ambulance and the Air Ambulance were deployed and provided specialist emergency medical treatment, but tragically, Mr Bond was pronounced dead at the scene.
While Mr Bond was being attended to, officers deployed to an address in Bicester where Bailey Heywood was arrested. She was found with her clothing covered in blood. Judge Ian Pringle, sitting at Oxford Crown Court, told 23-year-old Heywood: “I cannot ignore the fact that although you did not take the knife to the scene of the crime, you did indeed go into the kitchen and arm yourself with a knife and deliberately returned to the scene when you could have left the flat.
“It’s an aggravating feature that the victim Dale Bond died in his own home and at the time of the offence you had drank alcohol.”
Heywood, who three minutes away from the murder scene, had previously been convicted by a jury of one count of murdering middle-aged Mr Bond. The jury heard that Heywood had been dating Mr Bond for a year prior to his murder. She denied the charge of murder and an alternative charge of manslaughter but was convicted of the more serious charge which carried a mandatory life sentence in jail.
Senior Investigating Officer Detective Chief Inspector Will Crowther of the Major Crime Unit, said: “My thoughts firstly go out to the family and friends of Mr Bond, who have lost a much loved son, father, brother, uncle, and friend. Dale’s life was taken at the hands of Heywood. The jury completely rejected Heywood’s account that she was acting in self-defence, and there is absolutely no evidence to suggest that Mr Bond attacked Heywood.
“The precise motives for the murder remain unclear to this day and Heywood is the only person who could tell us, but she has chosen not to, instead claiming self-defence. We know that Heywood went to see Mr Bond, who she was in a relationship with, and when he least expected it, she subjected him to a vicious attack stabbing him. One of the blows caused an un-survivable wound to his chest.
“Heywood left Mr Bond for dead and was arrested shortly after when we were alerted to the incident. I would like to pay tribute to the family of Mr Bond, who have been supportive throughout our investigation, and have acted with dignity during the court process. I hope that the conviction of Heywood will help them to move forward.”
