A 23-year-old man has appeared in court charged with the murder of Kathryn Parton, a 34-year-old woman who was found with severe head injuries at her home in east Belfast on May 15. Ms. Parton, affectionately known as Kat, was discovered by her father, who had grown concerned after not hearing from her for several days.
Tragically, Ms. Parton had lain undiscovered for up to six days in the blood-stained bedroom of her property before her father raised the alarm.
Upon arrival at the scene, police observed a significant amount of blood around Ms. Parton’s body, on her bed, and splattered across the walls, indicating a violent and sustained attack primarily targeting her head. The scene further displayed signs of a struggle, including a television that had been forcibly removed from its wall bracket and was found lying on the bedroom floor. “There had been an attack on Kathryn which was sustained and all focused on her head, due to the amount of blood and the distribution of it in the room,” a detective commented, highlighting the brutality of the assault.
In a Belfast magistrates court on Monday, the 23-year-old partner of Kat, faced charges of murder aggravated by domestic abuse, with the timeframe of the offense spanning from May 9 to May 15. Accompanying him was his mother, who faced charges of attempting to pervert the course of justice by destroying evidence and aiding and abetting a breach of bail.
A third individual, aged 22, was also charged with assisting an offender and also aiding and abetting a breach of bail. During the court proceedings, the defendants only spoke to confirm their understanding of the charges brought against them.
This horrific case has left the local community in shock and mourning, as details of the violent nature of Ms. Parton’s death emerge. The involvement of multiple individuals in the aftermath of the crime adds a further layer of complexity to the investigation, as authorities work to piece together the events that led to this devastating incident.
She is the 19th woman to be killed in Northern Ireland since 2020, according to Women’s Aid.
If you are experiencing any form of domestic abuse, coercive control or domestic violence, please reach out to Women’s Aid HERE or call 1800 341 900.
Call 112 / 999 for Police or Gardai
