Britannia Hotel murderer jailed for at least 24 years

Supermarket worker Gurminder Singh, also 29, slashed the throat of Amandeep Kaur Hothi at least 10 times with a craft knife in a savage attack in the room he had booked at the Britannia Hotel in Wolverhampton city centre on March 5 last year. He later cut his own throat but survived after calling an ambulance to the scene the following morning.

The victim - married to factory worker Mr Pal Singh and living with him in Wolverhampton - was secretly living a double life. Unknown to her husband she had met the man who would murder her through a Facebook account she used under a false name and they entered a secret relationship.

Gurminder Singh did not know she was married and struck after discovering she had repeatedly lied to him. She wanted to end their a relationship that had lasted over 12 months and seen him travel from his home in London to Wolverhampton nine times.

On the last occasion he went armed with the craft knife he used while working at the supermarket below the flat where he lived in Green Lane, Forest Gate.

A Wolverhampton Crown Court jury unanimously convicted him of murder after a trial lasting more than two weeks. He had admitted stabbing her, but denied murder on the grounds he had been 'out of control' at the time.

Judge John Warner this afternoon jailed Singh for life and set the minimum term he must serve at 24 years.

See also: Woman lay dead for more than 13 hours after Wolverhampton city centre hotel killing

Amandeep's husband Pal Singh, said this afternoon: "Our family has been left devastated and traumatised by the events of the 5 and 6 March this year. We are heartbroken by the loss of Amandeep.

"We are pleased the person responsible has been found guilty. Both the court trial has been difficult and distressing emotionally for us to endure.

"The family is rallying together to look after Amandeep's two young sons and we now want to be left alone to grieve and to come to terms with all that has happened."

Detective Sergent Andy Bradley added: "This is a truly tragic case for the family left behind.

"Amandeep leaves two young sons and a devastated husband and family who have to continue to carry picking up the pieces of their lives which changed forever on that fateful day in March.

"We are still unsure how Amandeep met Singh or how long they had been seeing each other. Amandeep had always appeared to be happily married and she doted on her young boys.

"We hope that today's sentence brings some comfort and closure for the family and our thoughts are with them at this time."