'Psychopathic' builder jailed for at least 49 years after killing escorts and incinerating their bodies
13 January 2023, 13:38
A builder has been jailed for life with a minimum term of 49 years for the murders of two women escorts in Sussex in 2021.
Mark Brown, 41, was found guilty last year of murdering Leah Ware and Alexandra Morgan.
He was sentenced by judge Justice Nicholas Hilliard on Friday in his absence - after refusing to attend Hove Crown Court.
Brown killed Ms Ware, 33, and Ms Morgan, 34, at a remote farm near St Leonards in East Sussex in May and November 2021, after meeting them through a sex work website.
He put Ms Morgan head first into a homemade incinerator before dumping her remains.The body of Ms Ware has never been found, but prosecutors believe Brown used a similar method to dispose of her and also killed her Pomeranian dog, Lady.
The jury of 10 men and two women took 10 and a half hours to convict Brown of both murder charges on December 1.
Detective Chief Inspector Andy Wolstenholme, of Sussex Police, said the force would speak to Brown as soon as possible after the verdict to try to persuade him to say what happened to Ms Ware’s remains.
On failing to appear in court and not saying what he did to Leah's body, judge Mr Justice Hilliard said of Brown: "His conscience is untroubled by what he has done."
Miss Morgan's parents described her as a “bright and energetic young woman with a determination to succeed and a strong work ethic who had endured challenges, challenges that she was overcoming to better the lives of her children that she adored".
A statement from Leah Ware's mum Rebecca read: "Leah was only 32 with her whole life ahead of her. Who would have thought she would be taken away in such shocking and horrific circumstances."She was kind, generous, intelligent and loving to everyone she met."
