Controlling thug found guilty of brutal sexual murder of defenseless mother who repeatedly reported his violence to police before killing herself

A controlling thug was found guilty of brutally murdering a defenseless mother; It was revealed that the mother was under investigation for her response to previous reports of domestic violence.

Paul Irwin, 50, faces life in prison for the murder of Tiffany Render, 34, who bled to death in her home on March 22 after committing a violent sexual assault on her while under the influence of cocaine.

At the time, Irwin was given a suspended prison sentence for repeatedly hitting his partner Ms Render with a rolling pin, slapping her and choking her last July.

Weeks before his fatal attack, unemployed Irwin had been arrested twice, denied bail and banned from contacting Ms Render over other allegations of harassment.

Cumbria Police referred him to the Independent Police Conduct Office following his death. The watchdog recommended the force conduct an internal investigation into how it handled other complaints, which would be followed by an independent review examining the handling of domestic violence by all public bodies.

In late February, Ms Render told police Irwin kicked her from behind in the middle of the night as she lay curled up in a bag containing her clothes outside his property. Irwin – after drinking 18 beers – had previously hit his head as he flung open the door demanding he leave the property in Whitehaven, Cumbria.

Irwin then warned that if she did not return he would burn her children’s photographs. Ms Render told police: ‘I told him ‘if you burn those photos I’ll kill you’. Then he said, ‘Come here, I will kill you.’ Now I’m telling you I’m going to kill you.’

Paul Irwin, 50, faces life in prison for the murder of Tiffany Render, 34, (above), who bled to death in her home after launching a violent sexual attack on him while under the influence of cocaine on March 22

Weeks before his fatal attack, unemployed Irwin had been arrested twice, denied bail and banned from contacting Ms Render over other allegations of harassment.

Ms Render described how his controlling behavior had intensified since his release from detention. His episodes of aggression were increasing in frequency and he feared his behavior might worsen and culminate in regular physical abuse.

On March 4, Ms. Render reported that Irwin had repeatedly threatened her by telephone while intoxicated.

Police body camera footage captured her in a phone conversation with Irwin and reporting his vow to ‘beat me’ and ‘knock me out’. Irwin, slurring over the loudspeaker, threatened to ‘belt up’ a police officer.

Prosecutor Iain Simkin told Carlisle Crown Court: “He told police he was absolutely terrified of leaving the property and was considering taking home security measures to protect himself from a possible attack.”

He found safe accommodation days later but – despite Irwin’s bail conditions – continued to spend time at the flat of Ms Render, who was still ‘in thrall’ to Irwin, whom he had been persuaded to visit on 22 March, hours before his death.

Just before midnight Irwin called the ambulance service and said he believed Ms Render was dead. Paramedics responded to the incident and noted that the woman was unresponsive and surrounded by blood-soaked bedclothes. He was declared dead by a doctor.

Irwin had thrown back five cans of Stella beer earlier that day and hoovered up 10 lines of cocaine as they engaged in sexual activity.

‘You were high on cocaine, weren’t you?’ He claimed Mr Simkin had given evidence during the trial of Irwin, who denied murder. Irwin replied: ‘Yes.’

The court heard three rooms in Ms Render’s flat were left bloodstained after he attacked her with punches ‘over and over again’.

A pathologist concluded that Miss Render, who weighed just under nine stone, had suffered repeated blunt force trauma and suffered a horrific sexual injury from unemployed Irwin, who is 5ft 1in tall, 1ft 10in tall and 17stone tall.

The pathologist said Ms Render could have fainted within 20 minutes and died within an hour, the attack was so severe and the blood loss was so rapid.

Mr Simkin told jurors Irwin exercised ‘total control’ over his life, including access to money, contact with his own children and what he could and could not eat.

‘The prosecution’s case is that she was an extremely vulnerable woman trapped in an aggressive, violent and controlling relationship,’ Mr Simkin said.

‘Tiffany Render was conditioned to obey, was in the thrall of the defendant and visited him anyway on 22 March, regardless of the risks to her own health.’

Just before midnight Irwin called the ambulance service and said he believed Ms Render was dead

Irwin told Carlisle Crown Court (above) that he suffered from paranoid schizophrenia, which was treated with medication and brought under control in March.

Irwin told the court he suffered from paranoid schizophrenia, which was brought under control with medication in March.

He insisted Ms Render’s death was accidental. However, he confessed to murder and sexual assault during his trial in the last 10 days.

Yesterday, the jury of eight women and four men unanimously found Irwin guilty of murder after deliberating for three hours and 45 minutes.

Irwin, wearing a dark suit, showed no emotion in the courtroom as the verdict was announced.

Trial judge Mrs Justice Foster heard a psychiatric report had been submitted to the court by Irwin’s legal team and announced Irwin would sentence him next month but he must sign the sex offenders register with immediate effect.

The judge called it a ‘dull’ case and told the jurors they would be disqualified for life from serving on crown court juries in the future.

Following Ms Render’s death, Cumbria police made a referral to the Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC) in March and asked Cumbria Police to conduct an internal review.

This was because she had previously contacted Cumbria police on multiple occasions to report that she was a victim of domestic violence.

An IOPC spokesperson said: ‘Our thoughts are with Tiffany Render’s family and loved ones, as well as everyone affected by her death.

‘Having considered the available information, we have decided that an investigation should be held to establish whether there were any missed opportunities to prevent Ms Render’s death. ‘In light of some of the positive steps taken by the police to protect him, we felt it was appropriate for the police to carry out this investigation.’

Cumbria Constabulary’s head of public protection, Det Supt Matt Scott, said of Irwin: ‘As we all saw in court, he showed no emotion, no remorse for what he did. ‘It is clear that he is a cowardly and terrible person who deserves to go behind bars.’

He added: ‘We are committed to ensuring that victims of domestic violence receive the support and protection they need and we work closely with our partners to help victims.

‘Following the tragic death of Tiffany Render, and because Cumbria Constabulary had previous contact with her in the months and weeks before her death, a referral was made to the IOPC, which was then referred back to Cumbria Constabulary to investigate.

‘The investigation has been suspended by our professional standards department until a domestic violence death review has been independently completed. ‘This review will examine the involvement of all agencies in this case and determine whether there is any learning that can be applied across all agencies to improve the response to family violence.’