The Murder of Lily Sullivan
Lily Sullivan was an 18-year-old college student living in Pembroke, Wales, she was learning to drive and was described as forgiving, kind and loving. She was a talented artist who loved music and spending time with her friends.
Lily went on a night out with friends on 16th December 2021. She met Lewis Haines, 31, in a nightclub and the two kissed. Friends of Haines reminded him that he had a girlfriend and cautioned him that Lily was 'far too young.' At some point, Lily and Haines left the club together. They were walking through an alleyway towards Mill Pond when at 2.47am, Lily phoned her mother and said 'I'll be there now mam. I'm on my way. I'm a couple of minutes away. I'm nearly there,' before the call was cut short. Her mother tried calling her back 30 times, CCTV shows Lily's abandoned phone lighting up. At around 3am a local resident heard a woman scream.
Lily was found face down in Mill Pond reservoir, her top had been forcibly removed and she had been strangled.
After murdering Lily, CCTV chillingly captured Haines walking past Lily's mother who was waiting at a nearby garage to pick her up. Lily's mother noticed Haines acting strangely and followed him until he disappeared into nearby woods. Haines then went home to his girlfriend and said 'I've strangled somebody.'
It is thought that Lily had rejected Haines' sexual advances and wanted to go home with her mother which angered him and led to him attacking her. Haines claims Lily threatened to report him for trying to rape her when she found out he had a girlfriend. The judge ruled, 'His intention was to silence her. He didn't want anyone to know what had happened in the lane.' Haines was sentenced to serve at least 23 years and 4 months in prison.
Leading up to Lily's death she had shared a number of posts about misogyny, sexual violence and femicide to her social media. One post showed floral tributes left for murder victim Sarah Everard with a sign saying, 'She was just walking home.'
