First picture of man who brutally murdered partner in 'jealous rage' and left her body on toilet floor

A man who brutally murdered his vulnerable partner and left her body lying on the toilet floor while he went shopping and visited his parents will spend at least 17-and-a-half years behind bars. Mathew Pickering beat and strangled Georgina Dowey to death at his home in Neath before putting a black plastic bag over her bloody and bruised face and then set about covering his tracks by sending a text to the dead woman's phone to make it look like she left the property to go home.

Former hospital operating theatre worker Pickering admitted the manslaughter of Miss Dowey but denied murder, claiming he had "snapped" and "lost control" during a late night altercation. But he was found guilty of murder following a two week trial at Swansea Crown Court last month. He returned to the dock on Monday to be sentenced.

Sentencing Pickering to life in prison, judge Paul Thomas KC told the 49-year-old that in his view he had been driven by jealousy when he administered the ferocious beating and then strangled his victim to death having found messages on her phone from another man. He said one of the striking and chilling aspects of the case was that the defendant had shown not a hint of "emotion, sympathy or regret" for what he had done and had demonstrated nothing but "cold, callous self-interest".

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Pickering and Miss Dowey had dated briefly while pupils at Cwrt Sart school in Neath but then lost contact until reconnecting via Facebook in the summer of 2019. There followed a "turbulent" on-off relationship for a number of years with the defendant living in Cadoxton near Neath, and Miss Dowey living in Pontypridd. By early 2023 Miss Dowey - who had a long history of alcohol abuse and suffering violence at the hands of partners - was living in a women's refuge in Barry after suffering a serious assault, and in March she went to stay with Pickering after being evicted from her accommodation.

In the early hours of May 6 Pickering beat and strangled Miss Dowey to death and left the 46-year-old's body lying on the floor of the downstairs toilet of his Beaconsfield Street house. Miss Dowey suffered more then 30 injuries to her head, face and body, including a broken nose and what appeared to be stamp injuries to one of her hands. Marks on her neck and damage to internal structures of the throat showed she had been strangled with a ligature but the actual implement used has never been identified. Pickering then put a black rubbish bag over the woman's battered face, closed the toilet door, and left her lying there while he set about trying to cover his tracks.

That afternoon Pickering - who worked for a number of years at Glangwili Hospital in Carmarthen and at Sancta Maria Hospital in Swansea - sent a text to Miss Dowey's phone saying "Did you get to Merthyr OK? x" to make it look like his partner had left the house. Police later established that Miss Dowey's mobile was in Neath when it received that fake text, however the phone itself has never been found. Pickering's trial heard how a man who Miss Dowey had been in a relationship with during the early part of 2023 had sent a number of affectionate and loving messages to her phone shortly before she was murdered. You can read the full evidence in the trial on our blog

During the course of Saturday, May 6 Pickering bought bleach from a nearby corner shop, disposed of a cannabis grinder in a dog waste bin, and put out a number of black rubbish bags - the bags were collected before they could be recovered and what they contained remains unknown. The defendant spent the night in the house just yards away from Miss Dowey's body.

The following morning Pickering walked to his parent's house in the Melin area of Neath, putting items in bins in the Milland Road industrial estate en route. These items have also never been recovered but at trial Pickering said they were unwanted biscuits and crackers. After spending time at his parent's house and buying a can of Cherry Coke and some cat treats at the nearby Kumar Stores, the defendant was given a lift back to Cadoxton by his father. Following phone contact between Pickering and his cousin Paul Jenkins that afternoon concerns were raised that there had been an incident at the defendant's house - Pickering's dad and brother Jamie drove to meet him in Cadoxton, and Mr Pickering Sr then called 999. Police officers, including armed officers, entered the Beaconsfield St house and found Miss Dowey's body. For the latest court reports, sign up to our crime newsletter here

During the murder trial Pickering claimed Miss Dowey had drunk three bottles of wine and a litre of vodka on the Friday, and then in the early hours of Saturday morning had demanded more alcohol. He said Miss Dowey had swung an ashtray at him, and then picked up a fruit knife and swung that at him too. He also claimed she had told him he would be "another Darran Almond", words he said he took to be a threat. Mr Almond was beaten to death by friends of Miss Dowey in Pontypridd in 2015. Pickering told the trial he disarmed Miss Dowey and pushed her to the floor, then described how the altercation continued in the utility room at the rear of the kitchen. He said he "snapped" and choked Miss Dowey with the sleeve of her dressing gown for between 10 and 15 seconds until her body went "limp". Pickering said he then pushed Miss Dowey into the toilet before returning to the living room and briefly passing out. When he came to he said he found Miss Dowey's body in the toilet and then spent the rest of the night sat in the living room.

During the trial Pickering was described as a "Jekyll and Hyde" character with a "contained rage" who went through messages on Miss Dowey's phone, only wanted to see her when she had benefit money to spend, and who blamed her for him losing his hospital jobs.

In an impact statement read to the court, Miss Dowey's daughter Chelsea said there were no words to describe the hurt Pickering had caused to the family by killing her mother in the most "horrific and undignified" of ways. She said her mother was a witty and comical woman who was not proud of much in her life but was proud of being a mother and a grandmother. And she said while no sentence could ever bring her mother back it would at least provide some closure for the family and give her mum the justice she deserved.

Addressing the defendant in the dock, Judge Paul Thomas KC told him he had brutally murdered a very vulnerable woman, firstly by delivering a ferocious beating and then by strangling her with unknown ligature. He said it must have been a terrifying way for Miss Dowey to die, and said she must have suffered not just physically but psychologically too. He said in his view Pickering had killed his partner in a "jealous rage" after finding messages from another man on her phone.

The judge said Pickering had then "calmly and methodically" set about trying to cover up what he had done by sending a text to the dead woman's phone to make it look like she had left the house, disposing of evidence, and concocting the story about being attacked with a knife in order to give himself a "runnable defence" he could put before a jury. Judge Thomas said one of the most "striking and chilling" aspects of the case was the defendant's behaviour both in the days after the killing and during the trial when he had had shown "not a scintilla or a flicker of emotion, sympathy or regret" even as he stood in the witness box describing to the jury how he had strangled to death a woman he had known for more than 30 years. The judge said Pickering had demonstrated nothing but "cold, callous self-interest" throughout.

Pickering was sentenced to life in prison and must serve a minimum term of 17-and-a-half years in custody before he can apply for release but it will be for the Parole Board to determine when or if he is released.