A jealous husband who stabbed his estranged wife 32 times before keeping her body in his bedroom for almost four days has been jailed for life.
Pawel Chmielecki, 40, stabbed Marta Chmielecka, 31, in the throat after she refused to rekindle their relationship before wrapping her body in a blood-stained duvet.
Police were alerted by her family after they received suspicious text messages suggesting someone else was using her phone.
Officers raided a terraced property in Wood Street, Kettering, Northants., where Chmielecki was staying, on October 19, 2021.
They found her body in a bedroom and Chmielecki lying alongside Marta’s body bleeding heavily from up to nine self-inflicted knife wounds to his throat.
He was rushed to hospital where he was treated for his injuries before he was charged with murder.
Chmielecki previously admitted murder and was jailed for life to serve a minimum of 18 years and four months at Northampton Crown Court today (Wed).
Sentencing, His Honour Judge David Herbert KC said: It’s clear from the evidence that Marta was scared of you and was frightened you would end up killing her.
“Those last moments of her life would have been utterly terrifying, as you stabbed her repeatedly in the neck.
"You accept you intended to kill her and must then have watched her die lying in a pool of her own blood.
“The only sentence that can be imposed for the offence of murder is life imprisonment, and that is what I impose on you.”
Marta’s family Iistened from the public gallery as the judge sentenced Chmielecki, who wore a grey Nike tracksuit and gold chain in the dock, via a Polish interpreter.
The court heard the couple wed in Poland and moved to the UK in 2017 but Chmielecki had subjected his wife to domestic abuse.
Detectives found he was a 'jealous, controlling man' who had also stalked, made threats and been violent towards Marta since the end of their relationship.
The court was told she was 'starting to enjoy life again' and was coming out of her shell before her ex-husband fatally attacked her.
On Friday, October 15, Marta had spent the evening socialising with friends before leaving on foot at around 10.40pm.
CCTV from the area revealed she encountered Chmielecki and before some sort of struggle broke out between them, with Marta ending up on the floor.
Afterwards she was visibly unsteady on her feet, with Chmielecki at one point appearing to hold her up in a bear-hug as they approached his home.
He later admitted he had stabbed her to death in his room with a knife used to cut up his pizza after confronting her about her forming new relationships.
A post-mortem showed Marta had suffered 32 sharp force injuries – seven to her right hand, five to her shoulders and upper arm, one to the left breast and 19 to her face and neck.
A combination of the stab wounds to her neck were the direct cause of her death.
