Maniac beat ex-girlfriend to death with 7kg paving slab as crying son, 6, begged him to stop
A MANIAC beat his ex-girlfriend to death with a 7kg paving slab in front of eight sobbing children who tried in vain to save her.
Rueben Peeni bashed Crystal Selwyn around the head 13 times in a savage 90-second assault that was recorded on a call to police.
Crystal's life support machine was turned off four days later.
'CALLOUS AND CRUEL'
Peeni, who was with Crystal on and off for 18 years, admitted murder in February.
Yesterday he was jailed for a minimum 15-and-a-half years.
Justice Lang the effects on the children of witnessing and hearing the attack would last the rest of their lives
The judge said: "The taunts you made to Crystal in the presence of your children added a further element of depravity and callousness to the brutality.
"Furthermore the children were not only present but two of them also tried to stop you.
"The fact that you carried out this attack in the presence of and in the face of opposition of the children takes the callousness and cruelty of your offending to another level.
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"It's difficult to see how any father could subject his young children and their friends to seeing and hearing conduct such as this."
Police had been called to the couple's home 111 times over the years, and Peeni had been jailed for attacking her, the court heard.