Tim Spencer QC prosecuting in West Midlands Murder

A West Midlands man has brutally murdered his prospective mother-in-law in a knife attack after his fiancée called off their wedding, a court has heard.  Robert Edwards, 42, of Tipton, is said to have carried out the attack on 7 May 2010, four days after finding out his partner had cancelled their wedding.  Mr Edwards denies murdering his partner’s mother, Sylvia Smith, aged 59. 

7 Bedford Row’s prosecutor Timothy Spencer QC opened the case against Mr Edwards at Birmingham Crown Court.  Mr Spencer told the jury how Mrs Smith's body was found lying in a pool of blood at her home in Erdington, Birmingham, when her daughter returned home from work at about 5.30pm on May 7. It is alleged that Edwards went to the victim's home in a lorry belonging to his employer and was let into the property by Mrs Smith.

Mr Spencer told Birmingham Crown Court, "It is the break-up of the relationship between him and Samantha, and more particularly, the aftermath of that break-up which lies at the heart of the killing of Sylvia Smith."

The trial, which is expected to last for two weeks, was adjourned until Tuesday.