A man and a woman who brutally tortured and murdered a mother have been jailed for life.
Warning: This article contains graphic content
Michelle Ramage, 43, and Ryan Hill, 27, violently set upon Susan Turner at a flat in Ayr, South Ayrshire, in March 2023.
Ms Turner, 41, was attacked with weapons, a golf club, scissors, mugs, a baseball bat, a dog chain, a radio, and a machete.
Judge Lord Mulholland told the killers: “You have both been convicted of the brutal murder of a defenceless woman, Susan Turner, who posed no threat to either of you. She weighed about seven-and-a-half stones.
“As she was being subject to the homicidal assault, she begged you to let her go. You ignored her pleas and subjected her to a brutal and cowardly assault.”
During a trial for Hill, jurors deleted from his charge that he had been involved in the machete attack or used a dressing gown cord to choke Ms Turner.
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Lord Mulholland stated: “The injuries you inflicted on this defenceless woman were catastrophic.”
The judge said “clumps of hair” was pulled from Ms Turner’s scalp and she was “scored over and over on the front of her body”.
Lord Mulholland added: “She was stripped and rendered almost naked. It was akin to torture and was clearly designed to demean and to disfigure her as a woman.
“She was repeatedly stabbed with scissors and repeatedly hit on the head and body with a golf club and other weapons.
“She was strangled with a dressing gown cord. She was dragged along the floor and beaten to her death. She must have been in agony at the time of her death.”
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Ramage pleaded guilty in January, while Hill was last month convicted following a trial at the High Court in Glasgow.
The pair were each handed a life sentence when they returned to the dock on Thursday.
Ramage was ordered to spend a minimum of 22 years behind bars, while Hill was sentenced to at least 20 years in prison.
Lord Mulholland told Ramage she would have been facing at least 24 years in jail had she not pleaded guilty, while Hill’s sentence was lighter due to the jurors’ deletions and the “lesser part” he played in the murder.
The judge told the pair: “There is no guarantee you will ever be released.”
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Detective Inspector Keith Runcie previously said it had been a “complex inquiry” as he thanked the local community for their patience and assistance throughout the investigation.
He added: “Our thoughts remain with Susan’s family and friends and I hope the convictions offers them some solace at what is a very difficult and sad time for them.”
