Glenn Nelson

On 2 June 2013, Krishnamaya Mabo, a 39-year-old wife of British Army Gurkha veteran Thaluman Mabo, went for a walk near her home on Arborfield Garrison in Berkshire to pick nettles for a herbal drink. Unbeknownst to her, Glenn Nelson, a 30-year-old man recently released from prison and living in a caravan on the nearby Crown Park caravan site, had set out that afternoon armed with a knife and a deliberate intention to find and rape a woman.

Mrs Mabo, who had been married to her husband for 20 years and was mother to three children, encountered Nelson during her walk in the wooded area of Long Copse. He attacked her, attempting to rape her, and when she resisted, he murdered her by asphyxiation to prevent her from identifying him or providing evidence against him. Her body was discovered the following day, 3 June 2013, by a volunteer searcher after her husband raised the alarm when she failed to return home. Post-mortem examinations confirmed that she had been asphyxiated.

Nelson was arrested on the same day Mrs Mabo's body was found. A search of his caravan yielded crucial evidence linking him to the crime. During his trial at Reading Crown Court, it emerged that Nelson had pleaded guilty to both the murder and attempted rape charges. In October 2013, he was sentenced to a minimum of 25 years' imprisonment for the murder, with a concurrent six-year sentence for the attempted rape.

The murder sentence was subsequently referred to the Attorney General's office by Solicitor General Oliver Heald, who described it as 'unduly lenient'. Heald stated: 'This was an appalling and shocking case where a man set off from home with a settled intention to commit rape. It was the misfortune of Krishnamaya Mabo, a wholly innocent victim, to encounter him. She was murdered so as to prevent her from identifying and giving evidence against Nelson.' The Court of Appeal agreed and increased Nelson's minimum term for murder to 30 years in a ruling reported by the BBC on 20 January 2014.

The case drew attention to the vulnerability of individuals in rural areas and the dangers posed by repeat offenders like Nelson, who had prior convictions leading to his recent release from prison. Thames Valley Police led the investigation, swiftly identifying and apprehending the suspect following the discovery of the body.