Peterborough murder: ‘The most brutal, horrific crime scene I have seen in 26 years’

Superintendent Michael Branston said he had never seen such a gruesome sight in his 26 years of law enforcement with blood splattered throughout the property where Andriejus Kostiajevas killed his wife Ligita Kostiajeviene (42) on July 2 last year with a knife and hammer.

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The 47-year-old carried out the “frenzied” attack in the couple’s bedroom before stabbing a boy living in the house nine times and chasing another woman with a knife.

He then went to hide in an outbuilding at the back of the property as police arrived, with trained negotiators taking an hour to coax him out before arresting him.

However, on his way to hospital for injuries he had sustained he kicked an officer in the face, causing an injury to his eye.

Kostiajevas was found guilty of murder, attempted murder and assault on an emergency worker at Cambridge Crown Court on Tuesday and is due to be sentenced today.

Superintendent Branston welcomed the guilty verdicts, but admitted he had been horrified by the events of last July.

He told the Peterborough Telegraph: “I would rather not be investigating this type of horrific offence, but when these things happen it’s important to get the right outcome and I’m pleased for the family of Ligita we’ve got that.

“The sentence reflects the seriousness and outrageous aspects of this case - the brutality of the attack on Ligita and the fact Kostiajevas kept leaving the scene of the attack to go downstairs and get more weapons and attack her again until she was dead.

“This was by far the most brutal, horrific crime scene I have ever encountered in 26 years. There was blood across the whole of the property from the downstairs door, up the stairs and in the hallway.

“The bedroom is where the attack took place and it was quite obvious the victim had received multiple injuries, but it was only at the post-mortem where the magnitude of what happened came out. She’d received multiple stab wounds before he went downstairs to get a hammer.

“The call came in at about 7.30 in the morning. From the information coming through, at the time we thought we might have three deaths. You don’t expect to get that call.”

Kostiajevas was described by witnesses as acting strangely at his home on the day before the murder, including drinking at least three bottles of chilli oil.