Emily Sanderson murder: Moment Sheffield woman was bludgeoned to death recorded on phone call to taxi firm

The man who bludgeoned a Sheffield woman to death with a dumbbell and left her body in a Hillsborough house for 11 days has been jailed for life.

Mum-of-three Emily Sanderson, aged 50, was described by her loved ones as "the heart of our family" and an "incredible person" with many friends, cherished relationships and lots to give.

But at Sheffield Crown Court today (October 6), her family had to hear a telephone recording of how she met her end at the hands of Mark Nicholls, 43, at his home in Crofton Avenue, Hillsborough, which has now seen him jailed for a minimum of 17 years.

A tribute from Emily's mother Christine read: "The manner in which she was taken will live with us forever.

"She was the heart of our family and our heart has been ripped out. We miss her so much."

The court heard how Emily took work as an escort and that her killer, Mark Nicholls - a crack cocaine user - was an occasional customer.

Prosecutor Mr Sam Green KC described how Emily arrived at Nicholls' home on Crofton Avenue at 7.30pm on May 19, then made a phone call to a Sheffield taxi firm at 8.43pm.

In it, Emily chats with the operator and asks for a ride to Gleadless - when Nicholls' voice cuts in, calling her a "robbing bitch".

Mr Green told the court: "There were sounds of a muffled scream and a disturbance, and later a raised, high-pitched voice saying 'no'.

"Then, we hear the sound of four, hard, thuds, in the background."

The call was then cut off.

Mr Green told the court how the thuds on the call were the sounds of Emily being bludgeoned to death with a dumbbell.

A post-mortem examination later ruled Emily was struck at least 13 times in the head when she was killed.

It was then that both Emily's and Nicholls' phones were switched off. Officers later found Emily's phone in a field in June with bloodstains on it.

CCTV showed how within half an hour of killing Emily, Nicholls left the house to make good his escape. He was later seen at the Shell garage on Netherthorpe Road with a female companion with suitcases, where they got a ride to Sheffield Railway Station, took a train to Moulton, and had a pint in a pub.

On May 23, Nicholls returned to Sheffield and was seen by neighbours digging a hole in his garden. Witnesses said he seemed "relaxed and conversational", and said he was digging the hole to fill in a pond. On May 25, he was seen on CCTV buying parcel tape at a supermarket.

But it was on May 30 that Nicholls suddenly appeared to his parents, anxious and on edge, where he said he had "f***** up".

Mr Green said: "He told his parents he had been drugged and threatened with a knife by a girl, forcing him to knock her out with a dumbbell.

"Your honour, you may consider the phonecall you heard earlier when reflecting on this."

Nicholls' parents then drove him to Woodseats Police Station. Despite giving 'no comment' interviews, Nicholls told a mental health professional on June 5 how he had "killed a lady by bashing her head with a dumbbell".

Meanwhile, Emily's concerned family filed a missing persons report with South Yorkshire Police on May 25 having not seen or heard from the usually chatty and sociable woman in days. Friends were seen outside the house on Crofton Avenue shouting "Emily".

Acting on this, police forced entry into the house and made a horrifying discovery.

Mr Green said: "They saw what appeared to be a large package, sealed with parcel tape. Tearing it open, they saw a human head."

Emily had been wrapped in layers of material. Her hands and feet were bound with parcel tape. Her clothes were found in a bin liner nearby. The dumbbell was never found.

Nicholls pleaded guilty to her murder on September 8. At the sentencing, the court heard how he now accepts Emily did not threaten him with a knife, and that he was drunk and high on crack cocaine during the murder.

At Sheffield Crown Court today more than a dozen family members wearing T-shirts emblazoned with 'Emily #1 in a million' watched Nicholls get sent down for her murder.

In a statement read to the court by Mr Green, Emily's mother Christine said: "Emily Sanderson was an incredible person. She was deeply and dearly loved by me, her three children, her siblings and her family, and she had many, many friends.

"It's impossible to overstate the emotional damage wrought by her murder. She has been stolen. As Emily's mother, have had the daughter I loved taken away. I have had to face every parent's worst nightmare and live through the death of one of my own children.

"She had close precious relationships with all of her siblings and she was an important part of all of their lives.

"We have all suffered shock, deep grief, horror and loss, shared by all of us.

"The manner in which she was taken will live with us forever.

"She was the heart of our family and our heart has been ripped out. We miss her so much.

"We feel this every day, and will continue to feel it as long as live."

In court, Nicholl's defence barrister Mr Jamie Hill KC said the 43-year-old was "remorseful" and "cannot believe he had done it".

In sentencing, His Honour Judge Jeremy Richardson KC said: "You perpetrated a brutal murder on a young woman. You repeatedly bludgeoned her with determined ferocity. You intended to kill her.

"I have no doubt whatsoever that it was your plan - an irrational plan - to bury the body of Emily Sanderson in your garden.

"There is not one ounce of justification or legitimate explanation for what you did.

"This was a sustained, extremely violent attack upon a defenceless woman. This was an unrelenting avalanche of violence visited upon her by you.

"The sentence I pass upon for the murder of that defenceless woman is life imprisonment.

"It was truly a wicked act."

Nicholls was jailed for life, with a minimum term of 17 years and six months.

However, questions remain over why South Yorkshire Police did not publish their appeal for help to find missing Emily as soon as her disappearance was reported.

On the day Emily's body was discovered, the force reportedly made a "mandatory" referral to the police watchdog, the Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC).