A guy in England was sentenced to life in jail for murdering his grandmother.
Joshua Powell was arrested on suspicion of murder on May 17, 2024, after his grandmother, Emma Finch, died at the age of 96. She was discovered dead on the floor of her bedroom in the village of Liss after a carbon monoxide alarm went off, alerting Hampshire Fire and Rescue, according to a news release from the Hampshire Constabulary.
“The fire itself had started on the bed and spent matches found at the scene were different from a match box found elsewhere in the house,” according to the investigation.
Powell, 27, was sentenced to life in prison with a minimum of 26 years at Portsmouth Crown Court on Friday, Nov. 14, after admitting to Finch’s murder.
Powell was allegedly close to his grandma and would visit her “every week” to handle her grocery shopping and play Scrabble, according to a police news release. He first informed authorities that he had not left his residence and was asleep at the time of her murder.
However, CCTV footage revealed that Powell’s vehicle left his home around 2 a.m. local time on May 17 and remained in the Liss area. His phone, which was linked to his automobile, was also operational at the time.
“The notes on his phone additionally showed the code to the key safe at Emma’s address had been entered weeks earlier, despite him claiming not to know the code,” the cops reported.
Powell was arrested on accusations of murder on May 19, 2024. Police said he was in debt at the time of the event. He allegedly told his friends that he “hoped his grandmother would pass away soon because he stood to inherit” and that he had “a nightmare that he had killed his grandmother.”
Powell was charged with Finch’s murder on May 22, 2024, and was kept in detention until he admitted to the allegation on May 16, 2025.
A post-mortem study indicated that Finch died as a result of neck compression. There was no carboxyhemoglobin discovered in her blood, indicating that she died before the fire.
“Forensic examinations linked Joshua to the injuries on Emma’s neck, the wheels on the key safe, and also from a belt recovered close to the scene, which also had traces of Emma’s blood,” according to the police. A knife that matched the one missing from Finch’s house was also found near the address.
“Joshua’s cruel acts exploited Emma’s trust in him. Senior Investigating Officer Howard Broadribb stated in a police news release that his subsequent denials in the face of accumulating evidence against him demonstrated a complete contempt for Emma and her family.
“I hope that this sentence gives all of Emma’s relatives the opportunity to grieve their loss in the knowledge that justice has been served,” she said.
