It was a murder that rocked the neighbourhood and the City of Kelowna almost six years ago– someone had killed Theresa Neville in her Glenmore road home and there were no suspects.
On Monday, almost six years after the 27-year-old Kelowna mother’s murder, her common-law partner entered a surprise guilty plea.
Jay Sinclaire Thomson entered the plea at what was suppose to be the start of a six-week trial for second degree murder.
Neville was found on June 18, 2013 shortly after 12:30 a.m., when ambulance paramedics responded to a call from a home in the 300 block of Yates Road in Kelowna.
When police arrived on scene, they discovered Neville’s body and determined her death to be a homicide.
Her children were also found in the home. They were sleeping downstairs and unharmed.
Four years after the homicide, the victim’s partner, Jay Sinclaire Thomson, was charged with second degree murder. He is now 63 years old.
According to prosecutors, Thomson was 45 when he first met Neville. He was married with four kids and Neville was only 15 years of age.
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Court heard the pair were in a relationship for over ten years. He fathered two children with Neville, but the relationship was rocky.
The crown said that Thomson was controlling and jealous.
In the weeks and months preceding the murder, the prosecutor said Thomson had suspicions about Neville’s behaviour and believed she was cheating on him with a colleague from work.
The crown said on June 17, 2013 Thomson snapped and stabbed Neville 35 times while she sat on the living room couch.
Court heard that Thomson initially told police he wasn’t home when the attack occurred because Neville had asked him to run an errand.
He later told police that when he returned, he saw a large ‘native’ man in the backyard and suspected the man was dealing drugs to Neville.
Police put out a sketch of the man with the description that was provided by Thomson, but later withdrew the sketch from their investigation.
More than four years after the murder, Thomson was charged with second degree murder and remained out on bail until Monday.
Thomson’s guilty plea came as a complete surprise to some in the court room, including Neville’s family. His only two words were: “I am guilty” with no hint of emotion.
A sentencing hearing is slated to begin on Jan. 24.