Romanian man Cristian Sabou jailed for life for West Sussex murder of Valerie Graves
Written by News on 11/11/2019
A Romanian man has been jailed for life for murdering a 55-year-old grandmother while she was housesitting at a property in West Sussex.
Cristian Sabou, from the city of Dej, pleaded guilty to murdering artist Valerie Graves at a house in Bosham in December 2013.
He was later handed his sentence at Lewes Crown Court, and will serve a minimum of 24 years in prison.
It comes after an almost six-year-long investigation by Sussex Police to track down Ms Graves’ killer in one of the longest murder cases in the force’s history.
Sabou was eventually arrested and charged in Romania in July 2019, before being extradited to the UK.
Prosecutor Philip Bennetts QC told the court that Sabou had entered the house as a would-be burglar, expecting it to be empty.
He had worked odd jobs for the homeowners in the previous couple of months.
Ms Graves, who was described as a “free spirit” by her family, was found bludgeoned to death in the ground floor bedroom of a £1.6m property on 30 December.
She had just spent Christmas with her family, and had recently moved back from Scotland to spend more time with them.
Speaking outside court on Monday, Ms Graves’ son Tim Wood said the family felt “justice has finally been served”.
He added: “We have had to endure six years of waiting, not knowing if anyone would ever be brought to justice for this cowardly act.”
Mr Wood said his grandmother had also passed away “never knowing that justice had been served” for her daughter.
“Mum was very much loved by our family and is sorely missed by us all. Mum was a kind and caring person with little conflict in her life,” he said.
Referring to Sabou, he added: “We trust that during his sentence he will reflect on the actions he took and what this has done to the family.”
Meanwhile, Sussex Police Detective Chief Inspector Jon Fanner said his team had “never given up hope” of solving the lengthy case.
He added: “This has been a lengthy and complex investigation involving a huge number of inquiries and the largest mass DNA screening process the force has ever carried out.
“Although Cristian Sabou admitted to killing Valerie, it was only after he was arrested over five years later that he will spend many years in prison.
“I hope Valerie’s family will be able to find peace knowing her killer is finally behind bars.”
(c) Sky News 2019: Romanian man Cristian Sabou jailed for life for West Sussex murder of Valerie Graves
