A Brighton, England, man is guilty of murder for the 2023 killing of a couple, one of whom was his former stepdaughter. Right after the crime, the man then took two of the couple’s four children out for a drink and McDonald’s, according to surveillance video shared by East Sussex Police.
The convicted murderer, Derek Martin, 67, had a connection to the victims: the murdered woman, Chloe Bashford, 30, was his former stepdaughter, the daughter of his ex-wife. Although the marriage ended years earlier, he remained close to the family. Her husband, Josh Bashford, 33, was also killed that day.
What happened to Chloe and Josh Bashford?
On June 9, 2023, Martin visited the couple’s home in Newhaven, East Sussex, while the two children were away from the scene, Martin having dropped them off at school or daycare earlier.
Prosecutors say Martin had lent Chloe money and was deep in gambling-related debt, and that during an argument about money, he “just flipped” while cleaning a window at the house, striking Chloe with a hammer and then fatally stabbing her.
Josh arrived home minutes later, discovered the scene, and Martin chased upstairs, stabbed him, and then strangled him until he died.
What Martin did in the aftermath
After committing the killings, Martin changed his clothes and walked out to pick up the couple’s children from school. He spent some time with them at a branch of the coffee chain Costa Coffee (often called “Costa” in the U.K.) for a drink, and then took them to a nearby McDonald’s in Newhaven for food. The Sussex Police shared security footage of Martin with the children at both places.
He also took steps to conceal the crime, including removing the door handles from the rooms the bodies were in and removing the doorbell camera before collecting the children. He also discarded Chloe’s mobile phone, which he later helped police locate.
Martin’s motive
He later drove them to his ex-wife’s home, their maternal grandmother’s house, in Brighton, and then turned himself in to the police, confessing, “I’ve killed two people.”
According to the authorities, Martin said he felt the family used him for money and that he had gambling debts. According to Martin, Chloe owed him an estimated £11,000 (approximately $14,500). He claimed a depressive disorder contributed to his actions, but the jury rejected that defense.
Martin’s ex-wife, Elaine Sturges (Chloe’s mother), described him as “like Jekyll and Hyde,” saying he had severe mood swings and that his gambling habit had driven behavior she never anticipated. She told the BBC: “He had a temper, but I never thought he’d be capable of doing anything like this.” And if she did, she said she would have never let him near the children.
The jury declared Martin guilty on October 24, 2025. His sentencing hearing is scheduled for November 6, 2025. A life sentence with a minimum term is expected.
