Inspired by TV soap, teen kills mother with hammer

Apr 04, 2012 |

IANS

London

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A British teenager has been jailed for 16 years for beating his mother to death with a hammer in a murder inspired by TV soap Coronation Street.

Daniel Bartlam, who was immersed in television, film and internet violence, also wrote a nine-page soap, starring himself, in which he committed the 'perfect murder', which provided the blueprint for the killing of his mother, Jacqui, 47, The Independent reported.

Bartlam, who was 14 at the time, struck his mother seven times before pouring petrol around her bedroom and setting the property alight last April.

The woman could only be identified from dental records.

The teenager, who initially told police an intruder was behind the killing, later admitted what he did it as he lost control after his mother called him a 'freak'.

Detectives found that the killing had been weeks in the planning. They found that he had stored violent storylines from dramas on his computer. One scene from Coronation Street drama showed character John Staple fatally wounding another character with a hammer.

Bartlam had browsed websites including 'How to get away with murder' and 'People who get away with murder in shows', the court was told.

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