Man Sentenced to Life Over ‘Exceptionally Savage’ Murder of ‘Defenseless’ Mother of 2

A man in Scotland has been jailed for life for the “exceptionally savage” and “brutal” murder of a mother-of-two.

On Thursday, May 29, Owen Grant, 43, was found guilty by the High Court in Edinburgh of the killing of 32-year-old Lucretia Donaghy, known as Keshia, in the town of Elgin in November 2023, a Police Scotland news release stated.

He was sentenced to life in prison and must serve a minimum of 24 years before parole can be considered.

Per a Judiciary of Scotland release, judge Lord Scott said that the jury had decided “it had been proved beyond reasonable doubt” that the suspect had “murdered an unarmed and [defenseless] woman in her own home by repeatedly striking her on the head and body with a claw-hammer or similar implement.”

“Lucrezia Donaghy died as a result of blunt force head injuries,” Scott added, per the release, which noted that Grant had denied he was responsible for the victim’s death.

“There were seven individual injury sites on her head and neck, some of which represent multiple impacts and, therefore, the exact number of impacts was not able to be determined, however it was likely to be in double figures. The damage sustained to her scalp, skull and brain was significant enough to account for death,” the judge continued.

The judge said there “were fractures to the index and ring fingers” of the victim’s right hand “that were likely to have been sustained by an impacting object such as a hammer, whilst her fingers were against a hard surface such as a wall or desk, or the skull, as an attempt to deflect blows to the head.”

“Whatever implement you used, whether a claw-hammer or something similar, the murder weapon was never found, undoubtedly disposed of by you in calm and calculated efforts to conceal your crime and dispose of any evidence in its immediate aftermath,” the judge continued, stating the attack “was exceptionally savage, frenzied, and, as your own Senior Counsel rightly said, brutal.”

The BBC reported that a neighbor had heard what seemed to be an argument coming from the downstairs apartment before Donaghy’s death, with the victim allegedly calling out, “No, no, no.” Her body was discovered in a bedroom with the outlet reporting she had “[sustained] multiple blunt force head injuries.”

Per the report from Police Scotland, her body was discovered on Nov. 16, 2023.

Lord Scott told the court that the reasons for “this brutal murder remain unknown,” but said they “appear almost certainly to have been related to money,” per the release.

The judge stated that the suspect had been “struggling to pay” his rent at the time, and reportedly owed money to the victim for drugs. 

“Almost immediately after her death, you embarked, once again calmly, on a spending spree involving attending to your own needs and drug habit,” the judge said, stating that Grant went from having not a lot of money in the bank to “frittering away hundreds” of what was thought to have been the victim’s money on cocaine “in a matter of three or four days.”

“You started to do so before her body had even been discovered, within no more than two hours of her death,” the judge said, later noting that the suspect had a “history of previous violent and dangerous behavior.”

Donaghy’s mother, Amanda Gow, paid tribute to her late daughter in a statement shared by Police Scotland.

“Life without Keshia will never be the same. She was my only daughter and my first born. Her two daughters will have to live their lives without their [mom],” Gow said.

“I still cannot get my head around the fact that she is gone and that her life was taken in such a brutal way,” she added, asking for privacy at such a tough time.

Want to keep up with the latest crime coverage? Sign up for PEOPLE’s free True Crime newsletter for breaking crime news, ongoing trial coverage and details of intriguing unsolved cases.

Detective Superintendent Lorna Ferguson said, per the police release, “My thoughts remain with Keshia’s family and friends as they continue to try to come to terms with what happened. I hope the verdict will bring them some form of justice.”

“This was a complex enquiry and I would like to thank the local community for their patience and assistance throughout our investigation,” Ferguson added.

“Grant now faces the consequences of his actions,” the officer continued. “Violence such as this is never acceptable in our communities and we will work tirelessly to ensure those responsible are brought to justice.”