A knife attacker who murdered his own mother while on bail for stabbing his ex-girlfriend has been jailed for life.
Jermaine Gilchrist, 34, of Huddersfield, walked into his mother’s house in Croydon, south London, and stabbed her to death at her home in June 2010.
Despite phoning police from the scene and admitting his crime he was not deemed fit to plead until last year. He had been sentenced under the Mental Health Act in 2012.
The Old Bailey on Friday heard his crime was fuelled by “religious mania” after Beryl Gilchrist, 58, had objected to a preacher he was watching on TV.
Weeks earlier on May 6, 2010, Gilchrist had broken in to his ex-partner’s house with a key she did not know he had, and stabbed her in the shoulder as she lay in bed with their seven-month-old daughter.
He was arrested and bailed the next day.
Det Ch Insp Will Reynolds from Scotland Yard’s homicide and major crime command said: “Gilchrist is a very dangerous man and I am pleased that he was finally deemed fit to enter a plea and answer for his crimes.
“It has been a very distressing time for Gilchrist’s family, who are still having to deal with the fact that it was a family member responsible for killing Beryl.
“It has taken five years for Gilchrist to admit killing her and attacking his ex-partner and finally justice has been done and he has been jailed for the crimes.”
Gilchrist was jailed for life with a minimum term of 20 years, and eight years for the grievous bodily harm of his ex-partner.
