If you were to imagine a twisted, cold-blooded killer who brutally stabbed, skinned, decapitated and cooked their significant other’s head in a pot, before serving them up on a plate with some vegetables…
What kind of monster would you be picturing in your mind?
It sounds like the work of the same horror movie screen writers that conjured up Silence of the Lambs’ menacing Hannibal Lecter or Texas Chainsaw Massacre’s terrifying Leatherface.
But this particular figure’s stomach-turning crimes were not some fanciful work of fiction written for a gory Hollywood script.
They were 100 per cent real, and occurred far closer to home.
It was in the tiny Australian town of Aberdeen in country NSW that one of the most gruesome crimes in the history of our nation took place 23 years ago this week.
The sadistic nature of the crime was just as shocking as the person responsible for it: an average, normal looking, run-of-the-mill Aussie mother and wife.
A wolf in sheep’s clothing
Katherine Knight’s wavy auburn locks, soft round face and wide relaxed smile are not the usual features that spring to mind when one thinks about what a murderer might look like.
But behind this seemingly unassuming exterior is a dangerous and violent criminal.
She was born in Tenterfield, NSW, in October 1955, half an hour after her twin sister Joy.
Her home life was highly dysfunctional, allegedly tainted with domestic violence, rife alcoholism and sexual abuse within her childhood home.
Knight claimed she had been sexually abused from a young age by different men as she was growing up, but asserted that it was never by her own father.
Some of her classmates remembered her as a bully, who would stand over smaller children and fly into a “murderous rage” if things did not go her way.
On the flip side, others have stated she could be a very dedicated student, and even earned awards for her good behaviour.
Knight was reportedly fascinated with knives, and was over the moon to score her “dream job” as an abattoir worker when she was just 16.
She was later promoted and given her own set of butcher knives, which she would hang up above her bed wherever she lived “in case she needed them”.
Toxic relationships
Before moving in with her would-be murder victim John Price in 1995, the mum-of-four had a string of relationships that all had one thing in common – her extreme violence.
She married David Kellet in 1976, and reportedly tried to strangle him on their wedding night after he fell asleep following three rounds of intercourse.
While heavily pregnant, she burnt all her husband’s clothing and shoes before hitting him across the back of the head with a frying pan, all because he had arrived home late from a darts competition after making the finals.
She continued her violent behaviour into her next relationship with David Saunders, who she met in 1986.
The following year, she reportedly cut the throat of his two-month-old puppy right in front of his eyes, for no other reason than to demonstrate what she would do to him if he ever cheated on her.
On another occasion, Knight was said to have hit his face with an iron before stabbing him in the stomach with a pair of scissors.
Reprehensible and sickening, these incidents were just stepping stones to the stomach-turning horror of what was to come.
John Price, or “Pricey” as he was known about town, was a popular local figure in Aberdeen.
He was known for being a “top bloke” with a charming and down-to-earth demeanour.
John was likeable, generous, kind, and would always be the first to lend a helping hand to someone in need.
At the start of Knight and John’s relationship, it was said that she treated him well, and the pair enjoyed a romantic partnership and vigorous sex life.
But sadly, this honeymoon period would not last.
The sadistic murder of John Price
The gruesome bloody crime scene that detective Sergeant Robert Wells walked into on the morning of the March 1, 2000, will be etched into his psyche forever.
The now 65-year-old husband, father, and grandfather, from the NSW north coast, has since retired but has never forgotten the horrors he saw during his time on the force.
Officially diagnosed with severe chronic post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), he now visits a psychologist regularly to help manage his condition.
While he does not feel that Katherine Knight’s case was the sole contributor to his diagnosis, Mr Wells said it was certainly one of the worst cases he had ever witnessed.
“We didn’t get much information about what was going on at the house, just that we had to get there quick,” he told news.com.au.
“I was actually stationed in another police station, about 40 minutes away.
“By the time I got to the scene, Katherine was leaving in an ambulance. She had taken some pills. Not enough to kill her, but they made her sleepy.
“I walked inside and saw the human skin pelt hanging up, completely in tact in one piece.
“John Price’s decapitated and skinned body was lying on the floor in the loungeroom.
“We found his head, it had been boiled and cooked in a pot on the stove.
“There were a number of slices of rump, taken off his human rump, baked in the oven with some vegetables and put on plates, with the name of two of his children on them.”
Robert’s interview with Katherine Knight
After it was determined that she was lucid, and not suffering from any mental health conditions, detective Sergeant Wells sat down to talk with her.
He recalled how she was ranting and raving, claiming she had been a victim of domestic violence and abused by men throughout her life, but there was never any admission of guilt in relation to John’s murder.
Mr Wells recalled how there was a moment when he looked at her face and instantly knew everything she was saying was a lie.
“The fact was that Katherine Knight had been violent towards the men she had been in relationships with over the years,” he said.
“They were all quite smaller than her. It is very unusual for a woman to do this.
“In all my years on the force, I’ve never once been called to a scene where a woman was violently beating up on a man.
“Most of the time, from my experience, it is men being violent towards their female partners. Katherine Knight was a very unique case.
“In cases where men were hurt or killed in a domestic setting, it was by another male partner, family member, friend or acquaintance.”
‘A time of abject terror’: Judge’s sentencing
NSW Supreme Court Justice Barry O’Keefe sentenced Katherine Knight to life in prison on November 8, 2001.
She was the first woman in Australia’s history to be sentenced to life imprisonment without the possibility of parole.
Speaking about the case, the judge said she “did not qualify for mercy” because of her “cruel, vicious behaviour”.
“She showed him no mercy. She has not expressed any contrition or remorse. If released, she poses a serious threat to the security of society,” he said.
“I’m satisfied beyond any doubt that such a murder was premeditated. I’m further satisfied in the same way that not only did she plan the murder, but she also enjoyed the horrific acts which followed in its wake as part of a ritual of death and defilement.
“The things which she did after the death of Mr Price indicate cognition, volition, calm and skill.
“I am satisfied beyond reasonable doubt that her evil actions were playing out of her resentments arising out of her rejection by Mr Price, her impending expulsion from Mr Price’s home, which he wanted to retain for his children.
“The last minutes of his life must have been a time of abject terror for him, as they were a time of utter enjoyment for her.”
Knight is now 67 years old and is serving out her life sentence at Silverwater Prison, a women’s correctional centre located 20km west from Sydney’s CBD.
Prioritising mental health
Mr Wells was diagnosed with chronic severe PTSD after his retirement in 2011.
He advocates for mental health awareness, and encourages all men and women – especially those working in emergency services – to seek help if they need it.
“Although things have gotten better, I think there is still a lot of stigma around the issue of mental health,” he said.
“After 20-plus years on the job, you become a bit numb to everything you see. You might not feel like you’re affected at the time, but it can catch up with you later.
“My condition is something I manage. I see psychologist once a month, sometimes I depend on medication, sometimes I don’t.
“I have a good partner who keeps me level, and good, strong, loving children, and grandchildren.
“They make me want to wake up everyday and keep going. That’s my therapy.”