A WOMAN who stabbed her pal to death then lived with the body for 11 days could spend the rest of her life in a psychiatric hospital.
Mum-of-three Zoe Crowther’s body was found by cops in Church, near Accrington, Lancs., on January 14 after reports of a foul smell coming from the ground floor flat.
MEN MediaZoe Crowther, 51, from Church, Accrington. She was found dead in a flat on Walmsley Close on January 14, 2025.[/caption]
Janet Connor, 53, told police officers who climbed in through a window: “I need to tell you summat. I’ve done something bad, I’ve killed her.”
She was charged with the 51-year-old’s murder, but prosecutors accepted a guilty plea to manslaughter by diminished responsibility.
At Preston Crown Court on Friday, a judge sentenced her to an indefinite hospital order under the Mental Health Act. It means she will never be released from a psychiatric hospital unless the authorities sign it off.
The victim’s daughter, Gabby, said after the killer was sentenced: “Not only did Janet Connor take away my mum’s life, she took a piece of me too.”
Gabby’s sister Summer added: “I have no words that can describe how I feel. Mum was not a perfect person by any means, however her being taken away from us in the manner she has, has broken my heart.
“I have been robbed of the chance to ever have a future and meaningful relationship with her. She was taken away from us in the most brutal manner, and I have had nightmares about how scared she would have been and how alone she must have felt in those moments.”
Summer added: “The day we were told mum had had her life taken away, I didn’t realise what emotions were coming to hit me full force. I am still in shock; the nightmares persist seeing my family broken, I relive the moments of being told mum’s life had been taken. I cannot sleep without the aid of sleeping medication.”
Zoe’s son Glen wrote in a statement released by Lancashire Police: “When I found out about mum, it was like a daydream, it wasn’t real. I initially tried to carry on as normal, however soon realised that nothing would be normal again.
“I have worked as a bricklayer all my life since I was 18, I had a job that provided financially for my family. I returned to work thinking I would be fine, however that was not the case.
“I had lost myself not knowing how to cope with daily life and had to stop working. I have lost weight with the constant worry and overthinking on how I can no longer provide for my family the emotional and financial support I always had.
“I try not to think what happened to mum, however my mind wanders back to the same thoughts, it is relentless, so sleeping is the way I deal with blocking these thoughts and images out.”
‘Funny smell’
Cops were called to the ground floor flat in Walmsley Close, Church, at around lunchtime on January 14 after being told about a funny smell coming from the apartment.
Officers got in by climbing through an open kitchen window. They found Connor, who told them she’d done “something bad” – and said the body had been in the flat for a week.
A pathologist found that victim Zoe Crowther died after being stabbed in the neck. She also had wounds to her head.
The victim died 11 days before her body was found – the same day, astonishingly, that officers had been to the flat after Ms Crowther called police.
She’d also called a friend twice on January 3 to tell them that Connor was attacking her and they had been arguing over a television.
In the second call, at around 11.15pm, the friend said she could hear a “scuffle” and Ms Crowther asking for help.
Lancashire Police has referred itself to the watchdog, the Independent Office for Police Conduct, over its contact with Ms Crowther before she died.
In a statement, DCI Andy Fallows of Lancashire’s Major Investigation Team said: “Today marks the end of our investigation into what was the horrific killing of a mother-of-three.
“ My thoughts are with Zoe’s family, particularly her children, who have understandably been profoundly impacted by the untimely and brutal ending of their mother’s life.”
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