Family of Roger Leadbeater, killed by woman who escaped psych ward, fighting for answers year on from tragedy

Roger Leadbeater was walking his springer spaniel, Max, near his home in Westfield, Sheffield, on August 9, 2023, when he was brutally attacked.

At around 10.45pm in a park off Shortbrook Close, he was stabbed in his chest, bowel, kidneys and lungs, a total of 57 times according to the post-mortem report.

Roger was well-known and loved by the community, and drove children with special needs to school for the council.

Emma Borowy, aged 32, a stranger to Roger, was arrested the next day (August 10) and charged with murder on August 12. 

She killed herself in prison on December 12, 2023, meaning there was never a criminal trial. No other suspect was sought in relation to his death.

Angela Hector, Roger’s niece, said: “I’ve often sat and counted, one, two, three… to stab someone that many times, it’s barbaric.

“When they told us his injuries, I remember running outside and being sick. The only thing that hadn’t been done was his heart, and he had a big heart.”

A man found Roger’s body in the woodland area at around 11pm, called the police, and stayed with him until they arrived 13 minutes later, which Angela is “eternally grateful” for. 

She said: “13 minutes is a long time when you’re scared. Roger’s dog, Max, stayed with him too - Roger still had the lead in his hand.”

Max sadly had to be put down because he was so traumatised, despite great efforts with training and therapy.

Finding the crime scene will “live with me forever”

Ellie Hector, Roger’s great-niece and Angela’s daughter, said: “When the cordon lifted on the Sunday, we went to go and lay flowers at the scene.

“It hadn’t been cleaned at all. You could see where it started, where he was fighting her, and where he was laid.”

The family saw Max’s paw prints in the blood, broken acrylic nails on the ground, blood spattered on the trees, and the outline of his body.

They sat around the scene holding up a sheet for nearly five hours until a cleaner was sent on August 13. 

“Going to that scene, and actually seeing how he struggled and suffered, will live with me forever,” said Angela.

“If any part of it could be the worst bit, that were it.”

She was told a miscommunication between South Yorkshire Police and Sheffield City Council caused the delay, which both authorities apologised for.

Both have been “amazing” and “very supportive” throughout proceedings, Angela added.

Borowy’s history of mental illness

Borowy, an artist from Bolton, was known to have been mentally unwell, with her dad confirming publicly that she suffered from schizophrenia.

She shared footage online, which Ellie described as “bizarre”, in which she said she had been communicating with Lucifer.

In one video, she said: “I am absolutely in love with [Lucifer]… he’s just so wonderful.

“Lucifer came to me and he basically rescued me. He wants me to work with all the other fallen angels, but I need to work with satan first.

“I’ve been going to the forest at night and been connecting with satan.”

David Russell, a farmer from her local area, says she killed two of his goats, which Angela described as having “every bone in their bodies” broken and their throats slit.

A national newspaper reported last year that a hole had been dug and a pentagram left next to their bodies.

Greater Manchester Police confirmed they have record of arresting her for stealing goats.

It is believed Borowy was sectioned in May 2023, and was staying at the Royal Bolton Hospital under Section 3 of the Mental Health Act when she absconded to Sheffield on August 4 to visit a woman she met on a previous hospital stay.

She was returned to the ward on the same day, but escaped again three days later (August 7) and returned to Sheffield, despite the woman being her only link to the area.

After Roger’s death, Borowy was recognised by a police officer and returned to hospital, according to Greater Manchester Police. She was arrested the same day (August 10), and charged with murder two days later.

Julian Hendy from Hundred Families, a charity which supports families of the victims of mental health killings, said: “[Police told Angela that] Borowy said to a mental health professional she wanted to kill people. They knew she was a risk. How could she escape on leave?” 

Borowy’s family told press last year that she talked about how easy it was to escape, and “must have escaped a dozen times in the past two years”.

Angela says SYP was not informed that Borowy was missing again on the seventh, two days before Roger died.

Angela said: “She did make choices that night, but nobody of a sane mind could do what she did.

“She didn't want anything from him other than his life. Now my family has the life sentence, because we’re going to live without him forever.”

Court proceedings were stopped in December

In November 2023, the murder trial was postponed from January to July 2024 after the Recorder of Sheffield, Judge Jeremy Richardson KC, voiced concerns about Borowy's fitness to stand trial.

Weeks later, just days before a court hearing to discuss the progress of transferring her to a secure unit, she took her life in a West Yorkshire prison, having spent four months remanded in custody.

Angela was incorrectly told that Borowy had been transferred to a secure unit, and then was informed of her suicide in prison later the same day.

She said: “I didn’t know what to think. I feel for her family, you know, she's somebody's daughter. 

“She were clearly unwell, and had been for years, but just was not dealt with properly. People should have been protected from her.”

A family’s wait for answers - one year on

A crown court hearing to formally close the case after Borowy’s death passed without Roger’s family knowing, which they discovered when a Daily Mail journalist came to Angela’s home.

She said they all felt “left in the dark” especially since, back in August, they had learnt of Borowy’s arrest on the radio.

Julian said: “Families should be told of every step of the way in the investigation. That is what you would expect.

“We've got questions about the actions of police and mental health services, in particular from the [Greater Manchester Mental Health NHS Foundation] Trust.

“These killings happen 100 to 120 times a year in England. That’s a lot of trauma, a lot of families, a lot of communities.”

Hundred Families believes many of these deaths would be preventable with more assertive treatment.

Roger’s family is still waiting for answers from the Mental Health Trust’s internal investigation, the complaints they put into both GMP and SYP, and the inquests into both deaths.

Greater Manchester Mental Health said it is not able to comment at this stage due to the ongoing internal investigation and inquest proceedings.

Greater Manchester Police did not wish to provide comment.

Angela said: “Because there has been no criminal trial, I feel like Roger’s story weren’t told. I just don’t want people to forget him.

“He were just a proper, hardworking Yorkshireman. His big crime were he talked too much, you never had a quick chat with Roger - it probably took him four hours to walk the dog.

“And he still went on his dates - he never gave up on finding love, even at 74.” 

The children who Roger drove to school “still miss him”, he was “loved by everyone”

Roger was not married and did not have any children of his own, so was seen as all the family’s “uncle, brother, dad and grandad”.

“The children, who he transported, still miss him and remember him fondly as Uncle Roger,” said Cllr Kurtis Crossland, chair of the Communities, Parks and Leisure Policy Committee at Sheffield City Council.

“Roger was a tremendously popular member of the team here at the city council, he was a person who was loved by everyone who worked with him.

“The events that lead to Roger’s death was a horrific tragedy and something which shocked everyone at the Council and the whole community, it impacted terribly on members of Roger’s team and support was put in place to help those affected.

“It is impossible to imagine how the awful events affected those closest to Roger, and still do to this day.”

The council have also been supportive of Angela and Ellie, both of whom are staff members.

Ellie said: “Roger were still a big kid at heart. He liked his remote control cars, he had loads of them, and was always playing with them with the children in the family.

“You always knew when he had been here, because you could taste his aftershave”

They said he treated his dogs like his children, even once buying one of them a wheelchair, and that his birthday and Christmas presents were “terrible” - although he never forgot to get one.

Angela said: “30 years he spent walking around that field. A lot of people said it were ‘wrong place, wrong time’, but it wasn’t. He were where he’d always been.”

An inquest into Roger’s death is expected to be held this month at Sheffield Medico-Legal Centre.

Around a 100 families a year will have a loved one killed by someone with mental health issues. If you have been affected by any of this issues in this article, you can find resources through Hundred Families at https://www.hundredfamilies.org/

Samaritans offers a free, confidential listening service to provide emotional support and signpost you to advice. Email [email protected] or call 116 123, at any time. The mental health charity Mind can also provide support - find more details at https://www.mind.org.uk/