Relatives of kindly horsewoman Wendy Buckney told of their struggle to comprehend how she could have been brutally murdered by a man to whom she had shown only kindness.
They also revealed their agony at not being able to see her body to say a final farewell – and at having to spend a first Christmas without the 71-year-old.
In a statement read out before killer Brian Whitelock, 57, was jailed for the rest of his life, Ms Buckney’s sister Ann said: ‘We cannot stop thinking about what this man did to her, constantly worrying did she suffer, did she know what was happening to her and how frightened she would have felt.
‘Was she begging him to stop did she think somebody would come and help her, Can you imagine living our lives like this 24 hours a day every day it never goes away from us.’
Ms Buckney had befriended Whitelock after his release from jail for two earlier killings, providing him with odd jobs and repaying him with money and food. She would even do his shopping.
But, in return, he subjected her to a barbaric attack in her own home in August 2022, leaving her with too many injuries for a pathologist to count.
Ann Buckney, 71, told of the impact Whitelock’s horrific crime had on their family, saying: ‘What he has done has put us in prison mentally and we will never escape this.
‘He has not taken just one life he has taken ours too. He has robbed us as sisters and as a family because of what he has done.’
Wendy Buckney, 71, was ‘brutally’ killed in a horrific attack using a knife, table leg, and wooden shelf
Nicky Morgan’s sister Mel Huxley (pictured) called his release on life licence and failure to recall him to prison for breaches of his parole ‘a catastrophic mistake’
Brian Whitelock, 57, was told today he will die in jail and family members of three of his victims applauded the decision
She added: ‘We could not go the mortuary to see Wendy due to the violent injuries she sustained, we were never able to hold her hand, to kiss her and tell her how much we loved her.
‘We never said goodbye – can you imagine how that feels we had to wait to see if there was going to be a second postmortem as apparently this is what happens in these situations, again everything was on hold, and we could not arrange anything. It felt like our lives were being dictated, where was the compassion and empathy for us as a family.’
Ann, one of seven siblings, said the family had hoped Whitelock ‘would show compassion and stop putting us through the living hell’ of dragging out the legal process to a trial – which she said was ‘a rollercoaster none of us wanted to be on’.
She said: ‘The way in which her life was taken we will never understand, and we cannot and will never accept.
‘The question that is constantly in our minds is why? Why would Brian Whitelock do this to the person who gave him little jobs just so he had cash in his pocket so he could put food on his table and feed his dog or as Wendy did on occasions buy him shopping.
‘Brian Whitelock has robbed us of our sister, aunty, friend, the conversations that will be no more, there will always an empty void, the empty chair.
‘Brian Whitelock may only be a small man however Wendy was an elderly lady she would never have been able to fight him off.
‘We can never move on from this, however we want justice for our sister and Aunty this is what she deserves and nothing less, we want closure from the legal process and the difficulties that this has been.
Whitelock was convicted of murdering friend Nicky Morgan (pictured), 27, after battering him to death with a hammer
Wendy Buckney pictured before the attack. She was killed with a kitchen knife, broken table leg and and wooden shelving during a sustained assault in her own home
‘No sentence that Brian Whitelock receives will ever be enough for us as a family however we want him to know what he has done to us as a family, the nightmares we have because of his actions and the life sentence he has given us we can never ever escape this.
‘He has taken the life of his friend, the person who never did him any wrong Wendy’s only fault was to care too much and believing everyone deserved a second chance.
‘She believed she could help you Brian Whitelock and this is how you re-paid her kindness and her friendship by taking ‘her life.’
Ann Buckney paid a heartfelt tribute to her sister, an aunt to 16 nieces and nephews.
She said: ‘Wendy was such a kind fun, loving person she was bubbly and caring she adored her family the same as we all adored her. Wendy had close bonds with her nieces and nephews.
‘Wendy absolutely loved her animals and always had from being a child, she loved her time living and working on the farm this was when she was at her happiest.
‘My sister Rosemary’s daughter Nicola spent her childhood up on the farm with Wendy helping with the animals, learning horse riding, and being encouraged by Wendy to take part in horse shows.
‘We did not live in each other pockets, but we were always there for each other and would do anything for each other.
‘Wendy was such a lovely, kind person that she always had groups of friends throughout her life who thought the world of her.
‘Wendy’s death is unimaginable as it was so horrific as she was taken from us in such a horrible way by ‘the hands of the man that she tried to help and be a friend too.
‘We have now lived through the firsts of everything without Wendy the first Christmas for us as a family was so hard it was a blur; we could not celebrate knowing that she was gone. We tried to put on a brave face for the family and the children knowing we were falling apart inside.
Brian Whitelock is placed under arrest after killing Wendy Buckney in Clydach
Footage of the arrest shows Whitelock tell police ‘wait till you turn her over’ and ‘I’m so sorry like, for her like, for Wendy’ as he is put in handcuffs and escorted into a police vehicle
‘One of the hardest parts was going shopping seeing all the presents in the shops and not being able to by Wendy her Christmas present or to sit around a table enjoying Christmas with her.
‘We have had Wendy’s birthday – the first without her and a year after she was brutally murdered. We could not buy Wendy cards or presents or arrange to go out together.
‘All we have are her ashes that are sitting in the living room as we can’t leave go of her yet not until we have justice for her, there will come a time when we take them to the cemetery however this is all we have to look forward to laying her to rest and hoping she will have peace.’
Speaking after the sentencing, the sister of Whitelock’s first victim Nicky Morgan – who he bludgeoned to death with a hammer in 2000, said she was ‘satisfied’ with the whole life sentence.
Mel Huxley called his release on life licence and failure to recall him to prison for breaches of his parole ‘a catastrophic mistake’.
Mrs Huxley, 53, called his actions ‘mutilating and committing a long, vicious, torturing attack on a defenceless elderly lady with no apparent reason or defence’ – an ‘incomprehensible’ crime.
She said: ‘We hope Wendy’s family find some peace in knowing they shouldn’t have to go through a parole procedure due to him committing murder twice before he should not ever be released.
‘Our family take some solace and feel that justice has finally been served as the whole life sentence is due to his previous murders.
Brian Whitelock, 57, was found guilty after a jury took just 27 minutes to decide he murdered retired generous riding school owner Wendy Buckney, 71
Police sealed off the area on August 23, 2022, while forensic officers examined the crime scene in the search for evidence
‘We welcome any review to mistakes made in his monitoring while out on licence and firmly believe he should have been recalled long before.
‘Somebody should be held accountable – if he was in prison for breaching his conditions, Wendy would still be alive.’
Craig Harding, of the Crown Prosecution Service, said: ‘The level of violence Whitelock inflicted was truly shocking.
‘He carried out an act of extreme and motiveless violence on a vulnerable woman who had been nothing but kind to him.
‘The CPS called evidence to rebut his claims and presented a robust case to the jury resulting in this conviction.
‘Wendy’s family and friends have shown great fortitude throughout this case and our thoughts will remain with them.’
The Ministry of Justice said a review of how Whitelock was managed in the community before committing the horrific murder was now underway.
A spokesperson said:’This was an appalling crime and our thoughts remain with the family and friends of Wendy Buckney.
‘A Serious Further Offence review is currently under way and we will share the findings of the review with Ms Buckney’s family.’
Whitelock was seen leaving Ms Buckney’s home wearing only inside-out boxer shorts and covered in blood
Police officers are given flowers to leave at the scene amid investigations into the tragic incident in Wales
Whitelock was previously handed a life sentence with a minimum jail term of 18 years for murdering Nicky Morgan, 27, who he battered to death with a hammer in 2000.
He was also convicted of the manslaughter of his own brother Glen, 35, who died in a house fire started by Whitelock to cover his tracks after killing Mr Morgan following a row.
Sentencing today, Mr Justice Griffiths told Whitelock: ‘Every murder is a tragedy but the murder of Wendy Buckley was particularly senseless.
‘She was over 70, a pensioner with mobility issues who knew you had been in prison but she told people that: ‘everyone deserves a second chance’.’
He told Whitelock: ‘You brutally murdered her anyway, you killed her for your own pleasure while high on a combination of street valium and drink.
‘You were hell bent on consuming drugs and alcohol knowing full well the effect that had on you.
‘You inflicted a frenzy of violence on her which caused her to die a brutal, terrifying death. There were too many injuries to count.
‘The seriousness of the offence is exceptionally vile.’
The judge said the aggravating features were ‘sustained, exceptionally cruel and sadistic violence, the use of a knife, sexual assault, degradation of her body, voluntary intoxication and the fact that Mrs Buckney was a vulnerable pensioner.’
Whitelock pulled out the power line to the video link disconnecting himself from the proceedings just seconds before the judge gave his sentence. The judge directed he be informed of the decision by prison staff.
He said: ‘I sentence you to imprisonment for life. This is the case of the most extreme gravity, the seriousness of this murder requires you to be kept in prison for the rest of your life. You will never be considered for parole.’
Jurors in Whitelock’s trial last month heard he moved in opposite Ms Buckney in the village of Clydach, near Swansea, and she wanted to help him get his life back on track.
Locals left flowers at the scene where Wendy Buckney-Morgan, 71, was found dead on August 23, 2022.
A postmortem examination found ‘vulnerable’ Ms Buckney had ‘too many’ injuries for pathologists to count and flesh from her body was found on the walls and ceiling after the horror attack
She would employ him to do odd jobs in her home, insisting to her sceptical sister Ann that ‘everyone deserves a second chance’.
But in August 2022, Ms Buckney was murdered by Whitelock in a horrific attack – with her attacker inflicting a catalogue of injuries using a knife, table leg and wooden shelf as well as sexually assaulting her.
Whitelock was seen the following morning by neighbours leaving Ms Buckney’s home in the village of Clydach, six miles from Swansea city centre, wearing only inside-out boxer shorts and covered in blood. He told horrified locals: ‘I’ve killed Wendy. I don’t know why, she was good to me.’
A post-mortem examination found that ‘vulnerable’ Ms Buckney, who suffered from mobility issues, had ‘too many’ stab wounds and blunt force injuries for pathologists to count after the horror attack. Prosecutor Christopher Rees KC told Swansea Crown Court Ms Buckney ‘must have suffered greatly’.
The prosecutor called Whitelock ‘a man with a long-standing drug problem and significantly with a history of violence and of trying to divert blame and responsibility for his actions’.
In the days following his arrest, Whitelock changed his story to say he had found Ms Buckney injured and had gone to help her and had seen ‘shadowy figures’ outside her flat – adding: ‘I’m not doing another life sentence.’
Mr Rees said Ms Buckney had no children but was well-loved by her 16 nieces and nephews and two adult step-children, having taught hundreds of children how to ride.
She had given Whitelock work despite being warned against it by her family.
Whitelock conducted his own defence, in which he bizarrely claimed he had suffered two significant head injuries which had affected his behaviour – even though the prosecution said there was no evidence he had suffered such injuries.
When jurors returned a guilty verdict after just 27 minutes’ deliberations, he ranted: ‘I hope you all suffer a brain injury, I hope you all suffer a brain injury. I hope you all suffer what I went through. You are all bang out of order.’
Whitelock was also found guilty of the manslaughter of his own brother Glenn (pictured) in a fire as he tried to destroy the evidence of the killing
Speaking after the verdict, Ms Buckney’s sister Ann, accompanied by other family members, said: ‘We are grateful that the truth has been heard. Wendy was a very much loved, sister and aunty whose kindness, laughter, and spirit touched the lives of so many. Our lives will never be the same without her’.
Detective Chief Inspector Matt Davies, of South Wales Police, said ‘defenceless’ Ms Buckney was the victim of a ‘senseless murder’.
Meanwhile, relatives of his first victim, Nicky Morgan, who Whitelock battered to death with a hammer, told how they warned probation officials he was likely to kill again – three years before Ms Buckney’s murder.
Mel Huxley said she had objected to Whitelock being freed in 2019 after he broke terms when placed in an open prison the previous year, which included drinking and being in an ‘altercation’ with a shop security guard.
When his release was again considered in 2019, she said: ‘My last words to the parole board were that I will categorically, 100 per cent, guarantee that he’ll murder again, and that we will back here. And we were.’
A later review found ‘the likelihood of him committing further harm was assessed as low’ unless he relapsed into alcohol and drug misuse and he was released in November 2019.
Asked for her reaction to hearing Whitelock had killed for a third time, Mrs Huxley added: ‘I thought ‘I told you so’.