Monster killed girlfriend, 42, in scalding hot bath then left her in agony for hours with gruesome injuries

28/11/2023

A MONSTER killed his girlfriend in a scalding hot bath then left her in agony for hours after she suffered gruesome injuries. Mark Clowes, 53, ran the boiling bath for 43-year-old Clare Bell, who was incapable of getting herself out of the tub.

Clare Bell was scalded to death in a hot bathCredit: Staffordshire Police

Her partner has been convicted of gross negligence manslaughterCredit: BPM

After taking her out of the water, he left her for six hours in agony as the skin began to peel away from her body. Clowes finally raised the alarm at 5.10pm but it was sadly too late and Clare was already dead on the bed.

He is now facing a life sentence after being convicted of gross negligence manslaughter. Clowes was cleared of a more serious manslaughter charge at Stafford Crown Court. The horror unfolded on August 9, 2020, after the thug put Clare, who had been drinking, in the bath.

Police said it was obvious she would have been suffering from serious injuries, with Clowes later telling medics he saw the skin shed from her feet. A post mortem found she had suffered third degree burns on her back, bottom, thighs, feet, arms and elbows. The pathologist said the scalding had contributed to her death.

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Speaking after the verdict, Detective Chief Inspector Cheryl Hannan, of Staffordshire Police’s Major Investigations Department, said: “I welcome today’s verdict. “Clare should have been able to trust Mark to look after her when she was incapable.

He didn’t do anything for Clare until it was too late. “We employed a number of different experts to determine what took place that day. As well as a forensic pathologist, we employed the services of a specialist burns expert and a toxicology expert.

“Our thoughts remain with Clare’s family and I hope they can take some comfort in the guilty verdict.” Clowes was remanded into custody to be sentenced on February 2.

How you can get help

Women’s Aid has this advice for victims and their families:

Always keep your phone nearby.
Get in touch with charities for help, including the Women’s Aid live chat helpline and services such as SupportLine.
If you are in danger, call 999.
Familiarise yourself with the Silent Solution, reporting abuse without speaking down the phone, instead dialing “55”.
Always keep some money on you, including change for a pay phone or bus fare.
If you suspect your partner is about to attack you, try to go to a lower-risk area of the house – for example, where there is a way out and access to a telephone.
Avoid the kitchen and garage, where there are likely to be knives or other weapons.

Avoid rooms where you might become trapped, such as the bathroom, or where you might be shut into a cupboard or other small space.

If you are a -victim of domestic abuse, SupportLine is open Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday from 6pm to 8pm on 01708 765200. The charity’s email support -service is open weekdays and weekends during the crisis – [email protected][1]. Women’s Aid provides a live chat service [2] – available weekdays from 8am-6pm and weekends 10am-6pm.

You can also call the freephone 24-hour -National Domestic Abuse Helpline on 0808 2000 247.

Police were able to establish the burns contributed to Clare’s deathCredit: BPM

References

^ [email protected] (www.thesun.ie)
^ live chat service (chat.womensaid.org.uk)