Debbie Starbuck was last seen alive just six days after she married husband Jamie nine months after the pair met on the internet.
Starbuck admitted killing Debbie and disposing of her body before flying off on a 31-month journey that took in a variety of exotic locations across six continents.
Horrific: Jamie and Debbie Starbuck pictured on their wedding day. Debbie is thought to have been killed eight days later
Starbuck was arrested by detectives at Heathrow Airport as he returned from Peru in January.
Debbie's
body has never been found and it is believed that Starbuck killed his
wife eight days after they married, then dismembered her body before
burning it at their home.
The court heard that Starbuck met Debbie, 44, online in July 2009 and that the pair went on to rent a Nottingham house and marry on April 21 2010.
But
Debbie wasn't seen again after April 27 and a month later her husband
boarded an Amsterdam plane alone with a one-way ticket.
Debbie, who was a self-employed proof reader, had inherited £150,000 several years before she met her husband.
Detectives proved that Starbuck spent nearly £65,000 of her money to fund his trip abroad.
On his travels he visited 32 countries in total including Spain, Italy, Germany, France, Poland, the Netherlands, Laos, Abu Dhabi, Belize and Honduras.
Concerns about Debbie's whereabouts were not raised until two years after the couple's wedding when a friend informed police that he had not heard from her.
Detectives discovered that her passport had expired but money had been transferred from her bank account into Starbuck's.
Starbuck had redirected his mail, sold several of the couple's possesions and booked a one way ticket abroad.
When he was arrested at Heathrow airport, Starbuck was found to have two of Debbie’s bank cards in his wallet.
'We have learnt that Jamie Starbuck is a very controlling man, who engineered a situation to ensure he could benefit financially from Debbie’s disappearance'
Det Chief Insp Rob Griffin
An examination of his laptop also revealed a ‘confession’, where he admitted Debbie’s murder.
Police were unable to ascertain how Debbie died but during their investigation they found an unsent email from Starbuck that read: 'I had planned for it to be quick... I never expected you to be so durable.'
Sentencing Starbuck, Michael Stokes QC said: 'On more than 75 homicides, I’m trying hard to think of one as horrific as this.'
He described the killing as a 'grotesque and inhumane act', adding: 'This case shows the categories of wickedness are never closed.
'You knew she came from a strict Jewish background where cremation is wholly outside their tradition. You dismembered her body and burnt it. Even in death you stripped her of all dignity.'
Detective Chief Inspector Rob Griffin, of Notts Police, who led the investigation into Debbie’s disappearance and murder, said following the sentencing: 'Even though concerns for Debbie were only reported last year, all our enquiries seemed to link back to Jamie as being the last person to see her alive.
'His activities seemed very
strange and out of character, heading off suddenly on his travels. He
was obviously running away from what he had done to Debbie.
'This was an extremely complex case, where we had to plot where Jamie had been, where he was moving on to, and consider all the possibilities of what he would do next.
'On more than 75 homicides, I’m trying hard to think of one as horrific as this.'
Judge Michael Stokes QC
'As part of routine enquiries, we emailed both Debbie and Jamie’s accounts asking them to make contact. Jamie never replied.
'However we later discovered that a number of emails claiming to be from Debbie, sent to her family and friends in an attempt to convince them she was alive, were actually sent on the same day and from exactly the same location as emails sent from Jamie to other people.'
He added: 'We have learnt that Jamie Starbuck is a very controlling man, who engineered a situation to ensure he could benefit financially from Debbie’s disappearance.
'He helped her "set up" online banking accounts, which meant he knew her passwords, and encouraged her to withdraw from her friends.
'We can only speculate as to whether Jamie only married Debbie for the sole purpose of getting to her money, but he has been traveling around the globe for over 31 months, and we know her murder was premeditated as he went to great lengths to dispose of any evidence, including her body - which we are yet to find.
'After admitting his guilt
today, I hope Starbuck will now give Debbie’s family a chance to grieve
and have a proper funeral by revealing where she is.'
Paying tribute to Debbie, her sister Beth Jones, said: 'We are heartbroken to lose our beautiful sister and cherished daughter. We are still finding it difficult to believe what has happened and we don’t think that we will ever be able to come to terms with it.
'Deb was bright, adventurous, and full of life. She was kind, loving and loyal and had so many friends who loved her. She was the sort of person who would always go to great lengths to be there when you needed her.
'She was always interested in learning new things and meeting new people. Sadly this led her to meet Jamie Starbuck who took all that away from her.'
Debbie Starbuck's sister Beth Jones paid tribute to her sister after today's verdict. She said:
'We are heartbroken to lose our beautiful sister and cherished daughter. We are still finding it difficult to believe what has happened and we don’t think that we will ever be able to come to terms with it.
'Deb was bright, adventurous, and full of life. She was kind, loving and loyal and had so many friends who loved her. She was the sort of person who would always go to great lengths to be there when you needed her.
'She was always interested in learning new things and meeting new people. Sadly this led her to meet Jamie Starbuck who took all that away from her.'
'There are so many things about this that are almost impossible to bear. The unbelievable and shocking fact that she is dead, has been dead for so long and we didn’t even know.
'For nearly three years we thought we were communicating with her until, with the slow unravelling of the threads, we knew she could no longer be with us.
'We had no opportunity to say goodbye and no opportunity to grieve. We were living with the illusion that she was alive and happy and travelling around the world with Jamie.
She added: 'Everything that we have been told about what happened to Deb leads us to a place of unimaginable horror. We are haunted and tormented by the suffering that she must have endured in the violent act that caused her death.
'Having no clarity about what happened and where she might be is a cruel and ongoing torture for all of us.
'At the age of 91 our poor father should not have to bear the sorrow of losing a child in this unnatural and devastating manner.
'He has always been a stoical and proud man who survived the death of our mother nearly 14 years ago but he visibly crumpled when DCI Rob Griffin told the ghastly facts of what had happened. He has remained so.
'There could have been some comfort if we were able to find her body and lay her to rest. After what we heard today any hope of that seems futile. The thought that her bones lay scattered, burnt and lonely on a remote hillside or in a dark wood somewhere leaves us feeling desolate.
'Jamie has taken everything from Deb. He has taken her whole life, everything that she was and wanted to be, her hopes and dreams and her chance to be a mother, which she wanted most of all.
'As a family we are now living in a permanent state of bewilderment and anguish.'
The court heard that Starbuck met Debbie, 44, online in July 2009 and that the pair went on to rent a Nottingham house and marry on April 21 2010.
THE 32 COUNTRIES JAMIE STARBUCK VISITED
Murderer Jamie Starbuck visited a total of 32 countries during his 31 month tour including:
Spain, Italy, Germany, France, Poland, the Netherlands, Switzerland, Greece, Turkey, India, Indonesia, South Africa, Botswana, Zimbabwe, Thailand, Laos, Vietnam, Cambodia, Singapore, Abu Dhabi, Nicaragua, Panama, Costa Rica, Ecuador, Columbia, Guatemala, Honduras, Belize, Mexico, America, Canada, and finally Peru.
Spain, Italy, Germany, France, Poland, the Netherlands, Switzerland, Greece, Turkey, India, Indonesia, South Africa, Botswana, Zimbabwe, Thailand, Laos, Vietnam, Cambodia, Singapore, Abu Dhabi, Nicaragua, Panama, Costa Rica, Ecuador, Columbia, Guatemala, Honduras, Belize, Mexico, America, Canada, and finally Peru.
Debbie, who was a self-employed proof reader, had inherited £150,000 several years before she met her husband.
Detectives proved that Starbuck spent nearly £65,000 of her money to fund his trip abroad.
On his travels he visited 32 countries in total including Spain, Italy, Germany, France, Poland, the Netherlands, Laos, Abu Dhabi, Belize and Honduras.
Concerns about Debbie's whereabouts were not raised until two years after the couple's wedding when a friend informed police that he had not heard from her.
Admission: Jamie Starbuck was jailed for a
minimum of 30 years after pleading guilty to killing his wife of six
days Debbie and using her money to travel the world
Starbuck had redirected his mail, sold several of the couple's possesions and booked a one way ticket abroad.
When he was arrested at Heathrow airport, Starbuck was found to have two of Debbie’s bank cards in his wallet.
'We have learnt that Jamie Starbuck is a very controlling man, who engineered a situation to ensure he could benefit financially from Debbie’s disappearance'
Det Chief Insp Rob Griffin
Police were unable to ascertain how Debbie died but during their investigation they found an unsent email from Starbuck that read: 'I had planned for it to be quick... I never expected you to be so durable.'
Sentencing Starbuck, Michael Stokes QC said: 'On more than 75 homicides, I’m trying hard to think of one as horrific as this.'
He described the killing as a 'grotesque and inhumane act', adding: 'This case shows the categories of wickedness are never closed.
'You knew she came from a strict Jewish background where cremation is wholly outside their tradition. You dismembered her body and burnt it. Even in death you stripped her of all dignity.'
Detective Chief Inspector Rob Griffin, of Notts Police, who led the investigation into Debbie’s disappearance and murder, said following the sentencing: 'Even though concerns for Debbie were only reported last year, all our enquiries seemed to link back to Jamie as being the last person to see her alive.
Sentenced: Starbuck admitted the killing at Nottingham Crown Court, pictured
'This was an extremely complex case, where we had to plot where Jamie had been, where he was moving on to, and consider all the possibilities of what he would do next.
'On more than 75 homicides, I’m trying hard to think of one as horrific as this.'
Judge Michael Stokes QC
'However we later discovered that a number of emails claiming to be from Debbie, sent to her family and friends in an attempt to convince them she was alive, were actually sent on the same day and from exactly the same location as emails sent from Jamie to other people.'
He added: 'We have learnt that Jamie Starbuck is a very controlling man, who engineered a situation to ensure he could benefit financially from Debbie’s disappearance.
'He helped her "set up" online banking accounts, which meant he knew her passwords, and encouraged her to withdraw from her friends.
'We can only speculate as to whether Jamie only married Debbie for the sole purpose of getting to her money, but he has been traveling around the globe for over 31 months, and we know her murder was premeditated as he went to great lengths to dispose of any evidence, including her body - which we are yet to find.
Exotic: Among the many countries Jamie Starbuck visited on his round the world trip was Laos (pictured)
Stunning: The coastline of Bahía Salinas, Costa Rica - one of the countries that Starbuck visited in his 31 month trip
Historic: Starbuck stopped off in panama on his tour of six different continents
Paying tribute to Debbie, her sister Beth Jones, said: 'We are heartbroken to lose our beautiful sister and cherished daughter. We are still finding it difficult to believe what has happened and we don’t think that we will ever be able to come to terms with it.
'Deb was bright, adventurous, and full of life. She was kind, loving and loyal and had so many friends who loved her. She was the sort of person who would always go to great lengths to be there when you needed her.
'She was always interested in learning new things and meeting new people. Sadly this led her to meet Jamie Starbuck who took all that away from her.'
'SHE WAS KIND, LOVING AND LOYAL' - DEBBIE STARBUCK'S SISTER PAYS TRIBUTE
Horrific: Jamie and Debbie Starbuck pictured on their wedding day. Debbie is thought to have been killed eight days later
'We are heartbroken to lose our beautiful sister and cherished daughter. We are still finding it difficult to believe what has happened and we don’t think that we will ever be able to come to terms with it.
'Deb was bright, adventurous, and full of life. She was kind, loving and loyal and had so many friends who loved her. She was the sort of person who would always go to great lengths to be there when you needed her.
'She was always interested in learning new things and meeting new people. Sadly this led her to meet Jamie Starbuck who took all that away from her.'
'There are so many things about this that are almost impossible to bear. The unbelievable and shocking fact that she is dead, has been dead for so long and we didn’t even know.
'For nearly three years we thought we were communicating with her until, with the slow unravelling of the threads, we knew she could no longer be with us.
'We had no opportunity to say goodbye and no opportunity to grieve. We were living with the illusion that she was alive and happy and travelling around the world with Jamie.
She added: 'Everything that we have been told about what happened to Deb leads us to a place of unimaginable horror. We are haunted and tormented by the suffering that she must have endured in the violent act that caused her death.
'Having no clarity about what happened and where she might be is a cruel and ongoing torture for all of us.
'At the age of 91 our poor father should not have to bear the sorrow of losing a child in this unnatural and devastating manner.
'He has always been a stoical and proud man who survived the death of our mother nearly 14 years ago but he visibly crumpled when DCI Rob Griffin told the ghastly facts of what had happened. He has remained so.
'There could have been some comfort if we were able to find her body and lay her to rest. After what we heard today any hope of that seems futile. The thought that her bones lay scattered, burnt and lonely on a remote hillside or in a dark wood somewhere leaves us feeling desolate.
'Jamie has taken everything from Deb. He has taken her whole life, everything that she was and wanted to be, her hopes and dreams and her chance to be a mother, which she wanted most of all.
'As a family we are now living in a permanent state of bewilderment and anguish.'
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