Man Jailed For Killing Ex-Girlfriend’s New Boyfriend, Setting Body On Fire

A man, who murdered his ex-girlfriend's boyfriend and put the body inside a burning car to make it look like a suicide, was sentenced to prison Monday.

Mark Chilman, 52, of Herefordshire, England, was sentenced to a minimum of 22 years in prison for the brutal killing of 66-year-old Neil Parkinson on Dec. 12, 2020, in Worcestershire.

Chilman was said to have struck Parkinson in the head with a weapon, following which he placed the latter's body in his BMW X5 and set the vehicle on fire to make it look like a suicide, Wales Online reported. Locals who discovered the torched vehicle informed the cops.

According to Wales Online, Chilman was upset over Parkinson dating his ex-girlfriend Juliet Adcock, who broke up with the former in June 2020. However, Chilman was reportedly obsessed with the woman, and plotted the murder to get rid of Parkinson, so that he can reconcile with her.

After Adcock snapped ties with Chilman, the latter allegedly placed a tracker on her car and stole her underpants, with which he "cuddled every night." Chilman allegedly also left handwritten messages with lipstick on Adcock's bathroom, which read: “I love you forever," Wales Online reported.

Judge James Burbidge said Chilman had treated Adcock as his "property," BBC reported. The man allegedly invaded Adcock's farm, stole two petrol jerry cans and bought disposable mobile phones, while hiding his own phone elsewhere as part of the plan. On the day of the murder, Chilman waited for Parkinson to drive away from the farm in Broadwas to care for his 94-year-old dementia-stricken mother.

When Parkinson got down from his vehicle to lock the gate, Chilman hit him with a weapon, possibly a hammer, fracturing the base of his skull and knocking him unconscious. The court heard Chilman then drove the vehicle to another location, where he doused it with petrol and set it alight.

Judge Burbidge said the killing left Parkinson's family and Adcock "shattered and grieving." Sky News reported.