Pregnant girl's murderer jailed for 35 years

A former nightclub bouncer has been jailed for a minimum of 35 years for murdering a pregnant teenager two weeks before she was due to give birth.

Carl Whant, 27, raped and stabbed 19-year-old Nikitta Grender at her flat in Newport, south Wales, on 5 February last year, killing her unborn daughter at the same time.

He set fire to her flat before returning to a party where he had been all night with her boyfriend.

Whant, of Bettws, Newport, was convicted of murder, rape, child destruction and arson.

Outside Newport Crown Court after the verdict, the victim's uncle, Michael Brunnock, said: "Nikitta was so special and will remain in our hearts until we die. We will never deal with the tragic events that have stolen our family from us but hope we can at least start to understand what has happened."

Detective Chief Superintendent Geoff Ronayne said Whant had "never given any indication about why he committed this terrible crime".