Andrew Innes is a monster who should never be free to walk the streets again.
The sickening testimony at his murder trial at the High Court in Edinburgh peeled back the layers of a depraved and dangerous man who is evidently rotten to the core.
His life sentence came with an order that he serve a minimum of 36 years in prison.
And there is solace to be had in that he will be in late 80s before the punishment part of his sentence elapses.
But now that justice has been served, Andrew Innes is best set aside and forgotten.
And instead we should remember those whose lives he cruelly snuffed out, Bennylyn Burke and her daughter Jellica, and the child he subjected to such horrendous and unspeakable abuse.
Bennylyn was 25 when she was killed by Innes. Jellica a toddler of just two.
Both had their lives ahead of them to enjoy. The world should have been their oyster.
But they were cruelly denied the chance to grow together and cherish each other as every mother and daughter should.
Andrew Innes cannot destroy loved ones’ memories
Ultimately, power and control are what often motivate offenders who commit the most heinous of crimes.
An evil, pathetic, snivelling excuse for a human being took away their lives. But that same person will never have the power to destroy the memories that Bennylyn and Jellica’s family and friends have of them in better times.
Because their lives mattered.
They were valued and they were loved and their all-too-short time on this earth will never be forgotten.
Our thoughts and prayers are with Bennylyn and Jellica’s family and friends.
They have experienced a pain and anguish which no one should ever have to face.
Their nightmare will never be over. But hopefully the court proceedings have provided them with the closure – and strength – they need to go on.
