Massage parlour killer gets life

Garry Harding battered Samantha Tapper, 23, and Annie Eels, 55, to death in a ferocious hammer attack in Shrewsbury, Shropshire, on July 1 last year.

The 22-year-old was sentenced at Birmingham Crown Court where on Wednesday he admitted the double murder three hours into a trial that heard he had researched how to commit murder on the internet.

Harding, of Welshpool, Powys, used his computer to search the internet for terms such as "throat cutting", "silent death", "silent killing", "quick murders" and "how to kill someone" before the killings.

Miss Tapper, from Wolverhampton, and Mrs Eels, of Llansantffraid, Powys, were found dead in the front room of Rachael's Health Studio in the early hours of July 2.

Mrs Eels, who worked as a receptionist, had been hit on the head and face with a hammer at least 16 times, while Miss Tapper, a prostitute, received at least 14 blows.

Prosecution QC Stephen Linehan told the aborted trial that Harding had previously used prostitutes at the parlour, and knew Mrs Eels and Miss Tapper were alone in the premises.

He said in the hours leading up to the murder, Harding sat calmly reading a newspaper in Shrewsbury town centre, waiting until the last client had left Rachael's.

The court heard that Harding's gambling debts - he owed £16,500 to various banks and credit card companies - had "preyed on his mind", and he had searched the internet for a solution.

Harding, who is unemployed, planned to rob the massage parlour to help pay off his debts, the court heard.