AN elderly dog breeder is likely to die in jail after he was sentenced to at least 25 years for shooting his partner and her daughter dead at his puppy farm.
John Lowe, 82, was found guilty of murdering 66-year-old Christine Lee and her daughter Lucy Lee, 40, at his home near Farnham, Surrey, in February.
Sentencing Lowe at Guildford Crown Court, Mr Justice Singh praised the extraordinary courage of Lucy Lee after she returned to face her killer following a 999 call on the day of the shootings.
Lowe, flanked by three security officers, winked at his supporters in the public gallery as he was led from the dock.
Stacy Banner, whose mother and sister were killed by Lowe, wept after the sentence was handed down.
Mr Justice Singh said Lowe lost his temper when he took out his shotgun on February 23 to kill Christine Lee. "She died of a single shot wound to the chest fired at close range from above," the judge said. "Lucy was able to use her mobile phone to make a frantic and desperate call to the emergency services on 999.
"She said that you had shot her mum and that she feared that you were going to shoot her as well. Nevertheless, in an act of extraordinary courage, she went back to see if there was anything she could do to help her mother."
Mr Justice Singh said that, having heard the evidence, he had come to the clear conclusion that Lowe intended to kill Mrs Lee and her daughter.
"On the evidence heard at the trial, I have formed the view that, having killed Christine Lee, you shot Lucy Lee in the back of her head after she made the 999 call, then reloaded your gun and pursued her outside the cottage, with the intention of making sure that this time she died."
He was sentenced to life imprisonment for a minimum of 25 years for the murders, and a sentence of 10 years for possessing a firearm with intent to endanger life, to run concurrently.
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