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A 30-year-old man who lured a vulnerable teenager to the forest where he murdered her and desecrated her body has been imprisoned for a minimum of 25 years.
Shane Mays walked 16-year-old Louise Smith to a secluded spot in Hampshire before repeatedly punching her in the face, causing fatal injuries.
His body was subjected to what the prosecution called “extreme violence and rape” before being burned. Louise’s remains were found 13 days after a police search.
Louise had moved in with Mays and his wife, Chazlynn Jayne Mays, Louise’s aunt, shortly before the attack after the girl had a fight with her mother.
But arguments broke out between the three and Louise, who was training to be a veterinary nurse, complained that Mays would “flirt” with her and immobilize her, and a Snapchat video of him tickling her feet was shown to the court.
After sentencing Mays, of Havant, Hampshire, to life in prison, Judge May said she could not be sure that the murder was “sexual or sadistic” but described it as “grotesque.”
The judge said Louise suffered from anxiety and depression and had a social worker.
She told the Winchester crown court that she was sentencing Mays based on the fact that he had a “father and daughter” relationship with Louise. “He committed the most grotesque breach of trust,” he said.
The Hampshire County Council has announced a learning review of the case. A spokesperson said: “All evidence heard in court will be considered along with all other relevant information from the council and other agencies by the Hampshire Child Protection Association in its learning review.”
Addressing Mays in a statement on the victim’s impact, Louise’s mother, Rebecca Cooper, said: “You have taken a part of my heart from me that will never be replaced. You killed my daughter Louise in such a traumatic way, but then doing what you did next is beyond words.
“You are a monster. What gave you the right to do that? You hurt her so badly that I didn’t get a chance to say goodbye, hold her hand, or even kiss her. I will never forgive you for this.”
Louise’s father, Bradley Smith, said he was “tortured by nightmares,” adding: “Louise was a beautiful daughter and they have stolen what would be my time with her.”
Mays told the court that he hit Louise in the face “many” times and heard her bones break after losing her temper. He said, “I kept going, I lost control of myself. She made a groan, that’s when I stopped. “
Andrew Langdon QC, representing Mays, said the defendant had been assessed as having learning disabilities and a personality disorder.
