Woman, 26, cut into 200 pieces by husband who dumped her body in Bag for Life – as mum says ‘I knew he would kill her’
THE heartbroken mum of a 26-year-old woman who was cut into pieces and dumped in a shopping bag by her husband said she “knew he would kill her”.
Nicholas Metson, 28, stabbed Holly Bramley, 26, to death at their flat in Lincoln then hacked her up into over 200 parts in the bathtub.
The killer paid school pal, Joshua Hancock, £50 to help dispose of her remains in the River Witham ten miles from the home.
Holly’s body was found in a number of shopping bags on March 25 2023.
Police recovered 224 separate body parts but bits of her heart, lungs and fingers were missing.
Metson was jailed for life with a minimum of 19 years after pleading guilty to murder and conspiracy to pervert the course of justice last year.
Now, Holly’s devastated mother Annette Bramley has spoken out after horrific ordeal.
The 65-year-old mum was never invited to Holly’s wedding and said she didn’t even know it was happening.
In her first interview following Metson’s conviction last year, Annette told the Mail: “I knew he would kill her.
“I told police he would murder her; I told anyone who would listen. Her family could all see it, but nobody could stop it.”
Holly and Nick first met at Boston College in Lincolnshire in 2016 and married in 2021.
From the start, Metson never made any effort to meet or speak to Holly’s family.
Annette Googled his name and discovered he had been convicted for sharing explicit photos of a previous partner.
She added: “Holly very rarely came home, but one day she turned up at our door devastated, sobbing and saying he had killed their puppy.
“I couldn’t believe what I was hearing.
“While Holly was in the shower, he’d put her little dog in the washing machine and turned it on. Holly found the dog and managed to break open the washing machine and pull it out, but he took the dog off her and put it in the shower with the water over its face until it drowned.
“I can’t explain how terrified I was for her safety. I begged her to never go back.”
Annette managed to get Holly to agree to report Metson to the RSPCA, hoping this would be the end of their relationship – but a few days later, Holly had returned to Metson’s flat, where her other pets were still living.
Over the years, Holly would come home to Annette with more and more horrific tales of Metson’s abuse.
Three kittens had been drowned in the kitchen and one of Holly’s hamsters was put in a food processor.
Annette and her husband, Mick, 65, a former soldier in the Royal Parachute regiment, ordered Holly to stop seeing Metson – and banned him from their home.
But within months Holly had arranged to move in with him and left the family home without saying goodbye leaving Annette “heartbroken”.
At first, Annette knew where the couple lived and would encourage the friends and family Holly had not yet cut off to visit the pair and check she was ok.
But after they moved house in 2021, Annette never saw her daughter again before her tragic death.
Detective Chief Inspector Rachael Cox of Lincolnshire Police said: “We are indebted to Annette. Despite her grief she is determined to work with us to help us reach those experiencing domestic abuse.
“She is an inspiration and a reminder of why we do this job.”
MONSTER KILLER
The horror unfolded in 2023 when police were scrambled to the home following a concern for welfare report.
On March 24, police attended the marital home after receiving a call regarding Holly’s welfare.
Metson callously claimed his wife had attacked him before leaving the flat to meet with two mental health workers.
Although the flat smelt of bleach and there were bloodstained sheets in the bath and a saw on the kitchen floor, officers left.
When they exposed Metson’s version of events as a lie, police returned later that day to find the saw had been stashed in a cupboard.
Sickeningly, the killer joked Holly “might be hiding under the bed”.
He was arrested on suspicion of murder but gave a no comment interview to police.
The following day, a member of the public spotted the plastic bags floating in the river so examined one.
Gordon Aspden KC, prosecuting, said: “At this point he made a grim discovery.
“At first he could not believe what he had seen. He was looking at a severed hand.”
Holly’s head had been severed and shaved, with a further 224 remains fished from the water.
How you can get help
Women's Aid has this advice for victims and their families:
- Always keep your phone nearby.
- Get in touch with charities for help, including the Women’s Aid live chat helpline and services such as SupportLine.
- If you are in danger, call 999.
- Familiarise yourself with the Silent Solution, reporting abuse without speaking down the phone, instead dialing “55”.
- Always keep some money on you, including change for a pay phone or bus fare.
- If you suspect your partner is about to attack you, try to go to a lower-risk area of the house – for example, where there is a way out and access to a telephone.
- Avoid the kitchen and garage, where there are likely to be knives or other weapons. Avoid rooms where you might become trapped, such as the bathroom, or where you might be shut into a cupboard or other small space.
If you are a victim of domestic abuse, SupportLine is open Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday from 6pm to 8pm on 01708 765200. The charity’s email support service is open weekdays and weekends during the crisis – messageinfo@supportline.org.uk.
Women’s Aid provides a live chat service – available weekdays from 8am-6pm and weekends 10am-6pm.
You can also call the freephone 24-hour National Domestic Abuse Helpline on 0808 2000 247.
A pathologist found four wounds consistent with a sharp incision but due to the brutality of the dismemberment, a cause of death could not be established.
Police later recovered a set of garden pruners, two knives and a claw hammer from the flat.
Following the murder, heartless Metson withdrew £50 from his wife’s bank account and made a number of chilling searches.
These included “What benefits do I get if my wife has died” and “Can someone haunt me after they die”.
Police also found CCTV showing Metson moving his wife’s remains from their 14th floor home using a Morrison’s shopping trolley.
He then put the bags in his car and paid former school friend Hancock £50 to help him dispose of the remains.
Metson at first spun a web of lies to cover up his crimes but later pleaded guilty to murder.