A jealous stalker has been jailed for at least 30 years for murdering his ex-girlfriend after following her with a tracker he had hidden in their young daughter’s scooter.
Yurii Muzyka, a Ukrainian national, was subject to a non-molestation order when he forced his way into 29-year-old Halyna Hoisan’s flat in Greenwich, south London, on 27 August last year.
Their daughter, then three, was in the home when Muzyka attacked Hoisan with a knife, stabbing her six times in the chest.
Following an Old Bailey trial, Muzyka, 34, from New Malden, south London, was found guilty of murder and possession of a blade and was jailed for life with a minimum term of 30 years.
Investigators found information on his mobile phone showing he had become fixated with spyware, masks, knives and human anatomy.
He had searched these topics repeatedly and had 10 images of spyware, 44 of masks, 186 of the chest and heart and 261 knives.
The placement of the stab wounds showed evidence of his research as they were calculated to cause the most damage.
Muzyka took photographs of Hoisan as she lay dying, then plunged the knife into his own stomach after a man she had been on a date with ran out to alert the police.
CCTV footage showed Muzyka outside Halyna Hoisan’s flat on 27 August [Metropolitan Police]
Previously, the court heard how Hoisan, known as Lina, had previously been in a relationship with the defendant for several years and had reported him to the police for violence, harassment and stalking, securing a non-molestation order.
She had moved out of their home and was seeing a new partner, which enraged Muzyka.
The box for the knife and a copy of the non-molestation order were found on his kitchen table.
Sentencing on Friday, Judge Simon Mayo KC told Muzyka: “In killing Halyna, you robbed her young daughter of her mother just days before her fourth birthday.
“You knew your child would be present in the flat when you arrived. That knowledge did not deter you. That is a matter of particular gravity.
“I am sure your actions were driven by jealousy, resentment and determination to exert control over Halyna even after your relationship had come to an end.”
The judge noted the “degrading and intrusive” act of photographing his victim as she lay dying and said a video in which Hoisin’s last moments could be heard caused “incalculable” distress to her family.
Hoisan’s mother Svitlana said in her victim impact statement: “The death of my daughter has had a profound impact on me. I cannot comprehend how one person can do something like this to another human being.
“I still cannot believe she is gone. I constantly think how much she suffered and the fear she must have experienced before her death.”
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