A 39-year-old man has admitted to stabbing his former partner to death inside her Scottish Borders home. The brutal attack happened just one day after he learned she was seeing someone else.
Lee Inglis pleaded guilty at the High Court in Edinburgh to the murder of Stacey Hogg. It has emerged that Inglis was already well known to the courts for his violent history. He had twice avoided prison sentences for previous knife attacks on the 35-year-old mother of three.
When he killed her in June, Inglis was still serving a court-ordered home curfew and completing unpaid work.
On the morning of the attack, Inglis waited until his overnight curfew ended at 7:00 AM. He then walked the short, three-minute distance from his parents’ house to Hogg’s home on McLagan Drive in Hawick.
He slipped inside through the back door. As Hogg walked down the stairs, he lunged at her. She suffered deep, catastrophic wounds to her head and neck. Police later found her on a downstairs bathroom floor.
Upon his arrest, Inglis made a chilling admission to officers, stating he intended to decapitate her.
A history of violence
Records show a pattern of escalating violence. In 2022, Inglis received 150 hours of community service for choking Hogg and threatening her with a kitchen knife. The following year, he held a blade to her throat and sliced her face.
Despite these offenses, he avoided jail time. During his sentencing last year, Sheriff Peter Paterson acknowledged the crimes crossed the threshold for custody. However, he cited a “complex family dynamic” and the victim’s opposition to a non-harassment order when choosing a community-based sentence instead.
Grief and anger in the community
The killing has devastated the town of Hawick. Hogg’s funeral had to be held at the local town hall to accommodate the hundreds of mourners. A community fundraiser has since raised over £45,000 to help support her three children.
In a statement, her family described her as a cherished daughter, a loyal friend, and an amazing sister who was taken far too soon.
Detective Inspector Ross Duthie called Inglis a “violent and dangerous individual” who must now face the consequences of his actions. Inglis is scheduled to be sentenced on November 5.
Demands for systemic change
Hogg’s murder is not an isolated incident. Her death is part of a string of high-profile cases that have put Scotland’s justice system under intense scrutiny.
In Renfrewshire, Stacy Hunter was killed by her estranged husband just three weeks after he was freed on bail for allegedly strangling her. In Edinburgh, Vicki Solomon died after a domestic attack, and her accused killer later died in prison. These tragedies have fueled public demands for tougher action.
First Minister John Swinney recently called the issue of violence against women a “national emergency.” The government has promised several new safety measures, including a pilot program next year that will use GPS tracking on bail suspects.