Man remanded in custody charged with murder of Sarah Montgomery
Zak Hughes, from Ardglen Place in Belfast, was also charged with child destruction during a brief appearance at Newtownards Magistrates' Court on Wednesday.
Dressed in a grey tracksuit, he stood in the dock and nodded when asked if he understood the charges.
A PSNI detective chief inspector told the court he could connect Hughes to the offences.
No facts of the case were laid out and there was no application for bail.
The date of the offences given on court papers was June 27.
District Judge Conor Heaney remanded Hughes in custody until July 30.
Ms Montgomery, 27, died at her home in Donaghadee.
Floral tributes have been left outside her house in Elmfield Walk.
A 42-year-old woman, who was arrested in Belfast on suspicion of assisting an offender, was released unconditionally on Tuesday.
The death of Ms Montgomery has led to renewed focus on the rate of violence against women and girls in Northern Ireland.
She was the 27th adult woman to be killed in Northern Ireland since 2020.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Times
3 hours ago
- Times
The ‘Untalented Mr Ripley' accused of double murder
A Hollywood fraudster who fooled the Italian government into funding a non-existent film is at the centre of a real-life murder investigation after he was accused of killing his partner and daughter. Francis Charles Kaufmann, 46, fled from Italy to the Greek island of Skiathos after the discovery of the bodies in a park in Rome last month. He has been arrested and awaits extradition. He is, according to the Italian magistrate Flavia Costantini, 'a highly skilled criminal'. The hunt for Kaufmann started on June 7 when the body of Anastasia Trofimova, a 28-year-old Russian, was found hidden in the bushes in Villa Pamphili park. Trofimova is likely to have died of suffocation. Nearby, the body of her 11-month-old daughter was found, possibly strangled. Witnesses had seen the mother and daughter sleeping rough in the park with a man who had also been spotted drunkenly wandering with them around the centre of Rome, and who was identified during a police check as Rexal Ford. This was later found to be a fake name used by the American. The man's final encounter with police was on June 5, when he was seen walking without the woman but carrying the baby in one arm and a bottle of wine in the other. Officers let him go, although investigators suspect Trofimova may have already been dead by then, and the infant had hours left to live. Kaufmann, a Californian, had posed as a film producer in Rome to obtain €863,595 in tax credits from the Italian culture ministry for a film that was never made. The head of the ministry's film department resigned over the incident this week. Using another alias — Matteo Capozzi — Kaufmann claimed to have worked with the American director Clint Eastwood and on the 2017 Ridley Scott film All the Money in the World, which has been denied by the production. Investigators realised they were searching for a fraudster whose life increasingly resembled the film and novel The Talented Mr Ripley, in which an American con artist invents his past and goes on a killing spree in Italy. Kaufmann is said to have met Trofimova while she was on holiday in Malta in 2023. Their daughter was born last summer. Since Trofimova's tourist visa had expired, Kaufmann chartered a yacht to take them to Sicily to avoid customs upon entering Italy. Once in Rome, Kaufmann tried to broker new film deals but appears to have run out of money. When his real name emerged, the Italian daily newspaper La Repubblica tracked down his sister in Los Angeles, who claimed Kaufmann was a dangerous con man. 'Charlie was brilliant, he had a way with people,' she told the newspaper. 'He knew how to empathise immediately. When he lived in Los Angeles he would go to dinner with Hollywood directors, with famous musicians. He knew hundreds of stars of the entertainment world.' Even though he studied film he had only been involved in a few productions, she added. 'He would be capable of selling you your own clothes. He has always been brilliant, handsome, with thousands of women flocking after him,' she said. 'At home we called him the Untalented Mr Ripley.' He also had a dark side, she claimed. 'He is violent, especially when he drinks or takes drugs. His brain goes blank, he cannot manage his anger. He becomes a monster.' She added that after attacking one of his brothers, he changed his name to Rexal Ford and left the US. Italian magistrates have reported that Kaufmann was arrested for assault five times in the US and had spent 120 days in jail. On June 5, the day he was spotted by police with Andromeda, Kaufmann left a voice mail for an Italian contact, claiming Trofimova had left him for a richer man, leaving him with the baby. 'Unfortunately, she is not seeing the big future,' he said, adding: 'Whatever it is, it's all good.' On June 11 Kaufmann took a Ryanair flight to Skiathos and was arrested two days later. He will be brought back to Rome for interrogation next week. In a video conference with an Italian magistrate, he said: 'I am innocent, I didn't kill them.' He also accused the Italian police of being 'mafiosi'. Writing in the arrest warrant, Costantini accused Kaufmann of strangling his daughter, describing it as an act of 'instinctive cruelty' that revealed 'the extreme dangerousness of the man'.
Daily Mail
4 hours ago
- Daily Mail
EXCLUSIVE Special forces chiefs unite to demand an end to Labour's legal witch hunts against veterans
Special Forces leaders have united in an unprecedented move to stop legal witch hunts against veterans. The heads of the UK's three most elite military units have said 'enough is enough' after Labour seeks to leave troops exposed. The Northern Ireland Troubles (Legacy and Reconciliation) Act was introduced by then veterans minister Johnny Mercer in 2023 and established an independent commission, away from criminal and legal proceedings, to promote reconciliation. Sir Keir Starmer 's government has promised to dismantle the Legacy Act, in fact including a pledge to amend it in their election manifesto last year. The Mail's Stop the SAS Betrayal campaign has demanded a U-turn to stop former soldiers being hounded in their old age. The Government's failure to fight their corner has led to a joint move by veterans from the Special Air Service (SAS), the Special Boat Service (SBS) and the Special Reconnaissance Regiment (SRR) associations. They have written to Chief of the Defence Staff (CDS), Admiral Sir Tony Radakin, demanding action now to stop the 'lawfare'. At the centre of the campaign are 12 SAS soldiers who could face murder charges after a coroner ruled their shooting of four IRA terrorists in 1992 was unlawful. The men were cleared after an extensive investigation into events at Clonoe, County Tyrone. But campaigners have claimed their relatives' human rights were ignored. That night the terrorists had been equipped with a Russian-made heavy machine gun and three assault rifles. Remarkably, this February coroner Mr Justice Humphreys ruled the SAS's use of force excessive. The Mail understands this is the first time in the history of the SAS, SBS and SRR they have challenged the head of the UK's Armed Forces together. Their letter reads: 'This unified communication makes clear our collective position. A line must be drawn under the legacy matters arising from the conflict and that the time has come to bring closure to events that may never reach a just or conclusive end. 'We believe it is time to bring certainty, closure and fairness to this issue, not only for those who served but also for their families. Our joint letter reflects the deep concern held across the military community and urges decisive leadership to resolve this matter once and for all.' The Mail understands the current Director of Special Forces, who is responsible for SAS, SBS and SRR operations around the world, has also penned a furious letter on the same issue. Last night these unprecedented moves received emphatic support from former Commanding Officers (COs) of the SAS, leading defence voices and shadow ministers. Speaking exclusively to this newspaper, former SAS CO Lieutenant Colonel Richard Williams criticised the Ministry of Defence's position. He said: 'The whole country should reflect on the contents of this important letter by the combined Special Forces Associations and the total lack of official response extremely seriously. 'It outlines clearly a critical crisis of trust in the military and political chain of command by those special forces engaged today in the most dangerous and sensitive of national security operations. I remain utterly dumbfounded by the lack of overt support shown by the current or past leadership of the MoD for these brave and skilled British soldiers. 'The consistent, sweaty-palmed silence by those appointed to lead and resource our forces cannot be justified in any way and smacks of moral cowardice.' Since the Mail's campaign began last month, tens of thousands of signatures have been added to a petition backing veterans. Last night more than 165,000 people had signed the UK Government and Parliament petition. A further surge is expected in the build up to a major parliamentary debate on the issue on July 14. The political side of the campaign is being led by David Davis MP, former SAS reservist, and Tory defence spokesman Mark Francois. Last night, Mr Francois said: 'I welcome this well-informed intervention by these highly experienced personnel. 'Both the outgoing CDS, Admiral Sir Tony and his successor, Air Chief Marshal Richard Knighton, have acknowledged the recruitment challenges facing the Armed Forces. But who would sign up to serve a government that plainly doesn't have the back of troops?' Labour's manifesto included a pledge to repeal the act after a Belfast court last February ruled the amnesties were unlawful. The Act was found to breach the European Convention on Human Rights which places an investigative duty on the state where its agents may have caused death or injury. The government intends to use a Remedial Act to remove key provisions within the Legacy Act. Mr Mercer, who is backing the Mail's campaign, has described military veterans who left the forces to become Labour MPs as 'useful idiots'. Former Army commander Colonel Hamish de Bretton-Gordon said: 'Special Forces are the brightest jewel in the military crown who must be protected and supported. To lose any of their mercurial capabilities would make us less safe at home and abroad.' The Ministry of Defence said: 'We consider that the findings and verdict [of the Clonoe incident] do not properly reflect the context of the incident nor the challenging circumstances in which members of the Armed Forces served in Northern Ireland. 'We inherited a mess of a Legacy Act that was not supported by a number of Veterans groups and would have also meant immunity from prosecution for those who committed the most appalling terrorist crimes – such as those who took part in the IRA's bombing campaign.' 'Soldiers don't want to be deployed after our bogus murder charges' An SAS soldier cleared of murder after shooting a jihadist in Syria has accused top brass of throwing soldiers 'under the bus'. The Mail revealed he was one of five SAS troopers who went through a three-year legal hell. The soldiers were accused of unlawfully killing two terrorists in Syria via excessive force despite the enemy fighters vowing to use suicide vests to blow up 'infidels'. The jihadists were eventually shot dead by an SAS assault team in a raid in hostile territory in July 2022. They were only cleared of wrongdoing last month. In a remarkable interview on a US podcast 'Jay Cal' - as he called himself - said SAS operations are being compromised by red tape. He also accused General Sir Gwyn Jenkins, former Special Forces director of triggering the investigation despite knowing there was no wrongdoing. Jay told the Shawn Ryan Show: 'These guys like Sir Gwyn sit in their ivory towers in Westminster making these decisions which are destroying people's lives. SAS soldiers are saying they don't want to deploy on operations because what happened to us will happen to them. It is a disgrace. They are spineless, they have no moral courage. This has got to stop.' Jay, or Soldier C as he was known in the military police investigation, suggested Sir Gwyn wanted to 'look transparent' to boost his career. He described how Sir Gwyn's decision to launch the probe came after he was accused of ignoring war crimes. He added: 'We were thrown under the bus despite there being no wrongdoing.'Jay said his colleagues who also faced murder charges suffered emotional trauma. Despite their ordeal, the 'Syria Five' have not received any apology. They claim the Ministry of Defence failed to support them through the legal process. Their case provoked fury within the regiment, with troops demanding their officers provide more support.
The Independent
5 hours ago
- The Independent
Teenager who stabbed 13-year-old to death handed eight-year minimum term
A youth convicted of stabbing to death a 13-year-old boy during a drug-related row has been handed a life sentence with a minimum term of eight-and-a-half years. The teenager, who cannot be identified after a judge ruled that his welfare and prospects of rehabilitation outweigh the public interest in naming him, was convicted in April by a majority verdict of murdering Jahziah Coke, who suffered a six-inch deep chest wound. Passing sentence at Wolverhampton Crown Court, Mrs Justice Tipples told the defendant that she was sure he had 'intended to kill' Jahziah after pushing or moving a knife around his neck. She told the boy: 'When you killed Jahziah, he was only 13 and a child with everything in life ahead of him. This was a nasty and violent attack.' During her sentencing remarks, the judge accepted that the weapon used in the killing belonged to Jahziah and was taken from him by his killer at an address in Oldbury, West Midlands, in August last year. The defendant, who denied deliberately inflicting any injuries, fled over fences and then caught a bus to a friend's house to play video games in the hours after the killing, his trial heard. He also told the jury during his evidence in March that he was left traumatised after grabbing Jahziah's hands while being threatened with a knife, which he twisted towards the floor during an attempt to calm down an argument about a 'missing' quantity of cannabis. He also told jurors he did not have the knife in his own hands and had dialled 999 to summon paramedics, only leaving the property once he believed Jahziah was dead. During the sentencing hearing on Friday, Mrs Justice Tipples accepted that there was no premeditation, but ruled that the defendant was not acting in self-defence and that his actions were 'completely out of proportion' to the possible threat he faced. Prior to sentence, the defendant's lawyer, Paul Lewis KC, told the court during mitigation: 'The evidence at the trial was that (the defendant) has never had a knife, has never carried a knife and had never been seen with a knife. 'I am sorry to say it but that was not the position vis-a-vis the deceased. 'It was accepted from the very beginning by the Crown that the knife used in this case was not (the defendant's).' In a statement issued following the case, Emily Clewer, a senior crown prosecutor at the West Midlands Crown Prosecution Service, said: 'This is a deeply tragic case where Jahziah Coke lost his life and entire future senselessly to knife violence. 'Jahziah Coke's family and loved ones have suffered unimaginable pain and loss, and our thoughts are with them as they deal with the aftermath of this tragedy. 'The teenager responsible for this murder will now face the consequences of his actions in ways that will irrevocably change the trajectory of his life. 'While today's sentencing cannot undo the awful events that transpired that day, we hope it sends a strong message about the devastating impact of knife crime and how it can destroy lives, families and futures. 'There are no excuses for carrying or using knives to harm and kill, and the CPS will continue to work tirelessly with the police and partners to tackle knife crime and bring offenders to justice.'
