Justice outwith Moray: Labourer jailed for rape and murder of Jill Barclay
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A 23-year-old man has been jailed for life after admitting the murder of Dyce mother-of-two Jill Barclay.
At the High Court in Edinburgh today labourer Rhys Bennett, from Fife, pleaded guilty to rape and murder.
Ms Barclay, a 47-year-old proposals engineer, was walking home from a night out on September 17 last year when Bennett followed and attacked her.
In court today, he also admitted destroying evidence in an attempt to cover up his crimes.
Bennett was sentenced to life imprisonment and will have to serve a minimum of 24 years before he is eligible to apply for parole.
He was also placed on the Sex Offenders Register indefinitely.
David Green, lead homicide prosecutor for the Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service, said: "Rhys Bennett raped and murdered a woman who was simply walking home after a night out through streets she knew well.
"Jill Barclay should have arrived home safely to her partner and children. This senseless and brutal crime has devastated a family and shocked the wider community.
"While we welcome today’s sentence as justice being served, we are acutely aware that no sentence can ever adequately reflect the suffering of Jill Barclay’s loved ones.
"Our thoughts remain with them."
