Get all your news in one place.
100’s of premium titles.
One app.
Start reading
Daily Mirror
Daily Mirror
Entertainment
Kyle O'Sullivan

Code Blue: Murder - Katherine Smith stabbed 33 times and left in pool of blood

The first episode of a new two-part ITV documentary series Code Blue: Murder explores horrific murder of Katherine Smith.

Detectives found the mother-of-one's body in a pool of blood on the floor with 33 stab wounds in a flat in Cardiff.

Katherine, 26, had been dating 46-year-old Anthony Lowe for six weeks before her tragic death.

The pair met on dating website Plenty of Fish in September 2017, but Anthony created the fake identity of Tony Moore and pretended he was ten years younger.

In March 2018, Lowe, 46, pleaded guilty to murder at Cardiff Crown Court, he was jailed for a minimum of 18 years

ITV's Code Blue: How Plenty of Fish killer Anthony Lowe was caught in 36 hours

Katherine's mum, Debbie said: "I saw three people coming towards us, and my words to them were, ‘Don’t say anything’s happened to her.’

"And they just looked [at me]. And I just screamed the place down. I close my eyes and all I can see is Katherine trying to get to me."

With extraordinary access to the multidisciplinary South Wales Police operation that brought the perpetrators to justice, the ITV documentary shows how Lowe was caught in 36 hours.

Katherine Smith was stabbed 33 times (ITV)

Lowe went missing but was tracked down by officers to Bristol by his mobile phone.

He was still texting Katherine's family and threatened to commit suicide before turning off his mobile.

Senior investigating officer Det Chf Insp Rob Cronick says: “We desperately need to get answers from Lowe. With his phone now not responding and the fact he’s threatened to commit suicide, there’s a real chance we may be too late.”

The police read Anthony Lowe's texts (ITV)

Lowe turns up 30 miles away in Weston-Super-Mare and texts Katherine’s mum asking if her daughter is okay or not.

The force’s head of major crime Det Supt Richard Jones says: “That would indicate he doesn’t know she’s dead, I mean he’s hoping then now by the look of it, that she’s possibly still alive. But previously he’s been saying he’s killed her. He’s been thinking about it, he’s more hopeful now that she might be alive, which is a way in, potentially, for negotiators.”

After a dramatic takedown outside a supermarket, Lowe is arrested and taken back to South Wales, where cameras follow as he is taken into custody.

The murder weapon (ITV)

As detectives build a case against Lowe, he claims that after an argument Katherine had punched him and he had headbutted her, before he left the house and denies stabbing her.

Crucial information is given by one of his ex-girlfriends, who agrees to meet a detective and reveals a series of key personality traits about Lowe which help push the case on.

While Lowe clams up in the interview room, detectives discover a deleted video on his phone which provides direct evidence that they hope will put him behind bars for life.

*Code Blue: Murder, The Murder of Katherine Smith, airs tonight on ITV at 9pm

Do you have a story to sell? Get in touch with us at webtv@trinitymirror.com or call us direct 0207 29 33033

Sign up to read this article
Read news from 100’s of titles, curated specifically for you.
Already a member? Sign in here
Related Stories
Top stories on inkl right now
One subscription that gives you access to news from hundreds of sites
Already a member? Sign in here
Our Picks
Fourteen days free
Download the app
One app. One membership.
100+ trusted global sources.