'Manipulative' killer murdered partner hours after Norfolk Police released him

A "controlling and manipulating" killer murdered his partner just hours after he had been released by police over an earlier assault on her.

Adam Barnard, 41, strangled his partner Tara Kershaw in the early hours of 19 January at the guest house where they both lived in Great Yarmouth, Norfolk.

The previous evening he had been arrested and questioned over an assault on the 33-year-old, but was released without charge.

Hours later he strangled her in her room, then covered her body with a blanket, before confessing the next day.

Barnard, of Princes Road in Great Yarmouth, was found guilty of murder on Thursday after a 17-day trial over five weeks at Norwich Crown Court, and will be sentenced on Monday.

Norfolk Police is being investigated by the police watchdog the Independent Office for Police Conduct over its response to the earlier assault.

The court was told Ms Kershaw had called police at about 6pm the night before, telling officers that Barnard had hit her in the lip.

He was arrested by officers on suspicion of common assault and taken to Great Yarmouth investigation centre for questioning, before being released at 10.50pm with no further action.

The following day, police staff and a domestic violence adviser called Ms Kershaw's mobile three times - but their calls went unanswered.

Barnard approached an officer at Great Yarmouth police station at 9am the next day, telling them: “I think I’ve killed my partner.”

Ms Kershaw's body was found under a blanket on the floor of the room where she lived in a guest house in Princes Road.

A post-mortem examination later confirmed her cause of death was compression of the neck.

Barnard was arrested and later charged with murder and remanded into custody.

In interview, Barnard said his partner had attacked him with a lamp as he slept, and that he had "instinctively turned and pinned down Tara, having pushed her away".

He said he was in pain, in shock and had held her down by the neck. Once he felt her body go limp, he “immediately stopped” he said.

He claimed to have tried to resuscitate her and when her breathing did not change, he covered her with a blanket and passed out on the bed.

Barnard told officers he woke up the next morning, panicked and left the property.

Det Insp Alix Wright said: “Barnard was a controlling and manipulating murderer who preyed on Tara, exploited her feelings and her vulnerabilities.

“I would like to thank the jury for paying close attention to evidence presented in court which at times has been complex.

"They heard key evidence from medical experts that Tara had previous injuries to the bones in her neck caused four to seven weeks, five to ten days, and less than 6 hours before she died.

“Whenever she attempted to ask for help from authorities, she felt threatened by Barnard. He deserves to be behind bars.”

The IOPC is conducting its own investigation into Norfolk Police's response.

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