Man jailed for murder after neighbour heard mum shout 'please help me!'

A man who stabbed his partner 27 times before telling detectives "I did really love her" has been jailed for at least 18 years for the "monstrous" murder.

Corey Dryden, 32, fatally attacked mother-of-two Megan Hughes, 31, at their home in Chirnside, in the Scottish Borders, in February this year. The High Court in Edinburgh heard how Dryden was arrested by police soon after the assault and taken into custody.

Prosecutor Tracey Brown said the killer claimed he couldn't remember what he had done and started to cry during his police interview, telling detectives: "I did really love her, you know." While in detention, Dryden was assessed by mental health professionals. When asked by a nurse how he would manage if he was released on bail, he reportedly replied that was "unlikely" as he had "hacked" his girlfriend to death.

Lord Harrower said Dryden carried out a "sustained and savage attack". The judge referred to victim impact statements which described how "special" Ms Hughes was, adding: "As Megan's family has explained, such was the nature of the injuries you inflicted, they were deprived of the opportunity to look upon her face one last time.

"No sentence of this court can alleviate their anguish." Dryden last month pleaded guilty to murdering Ms Hughes by repeatedly striking her on the head and body with a knife. The charge also contained details of how he repeatedly struck his partner with a hammer "or a similar object" during the attack.

Dryden, appearing via videolink, was handed a life sentence and told he must serve at least 18 years behind bars on Thursday. Defence advocate Lili Prais KC told the court her client "struggles to comprehend" how he could commit such a crime.

In a letter to the judge, Dryden accepted no sentence would justify or bring closure to Ms Hughes' family for the "despicable, monstrous crime I have committed". He wrote: "'I have turned everyone's life upside down.

I will never be able to forgive myself." The court previously heard how the pair had known each other since childhood but became a couple in February 2024 before moving in together in the July of that year. Ms Hughes had two children from a previous relationship.

In December 2024, Dryden was fined £300 at Jedburgh Sheriff Court for threatening and abusive behaviour towards Ms Hughes. Lord Harrower highlighted a pre-sentencing report prepared at the time.

He said: "Megan had expressed a fear that you would kill her if she returned home that night. Ultimately, those fears were realised." The judge heard how on the day before the murder, Dryden sent text messages to friends and loved ones which showed how he was "struggling to manage his emotions within the context of the relationship".

One message said he was trying "not to go mental.