Woman jailed for 'hitman' attempt

Hayley Johnston pleaded guilty to the charge in October

An "obsessed" woman who hired a hitman to kill the wife of her lover, has been jailed for five-and-a-half years.

Hayley Johnston, 43, paid £10,000 to have Rosalynd Johnston killed in a staged burglary in May 2003 - but the "hitman" was an undercover detective.

Johnston, of Brighouse, West Yorkshire, admitted soliciting a murder before Manchester Crown Court in October 2003.

Sentencing her on Friday, Judge Clement Goldstone said it had been a determined effort fuelled by obsession and hatred.

He said: "This was no harebrained scheme in which your mind was overborne by fantasy.

"You were motivated by two factors. Firstly, obsession with a man who had an unhealthy influence on your life, and secondly, hatred for his wife."

She was prepared to pay a complete stranger to kill her lover's wife and was more than willing to go through with the deal Detective Inspector Bill Beddows

The court heard that the defendant began an affair with Stuart Johnston, who now lives in Bury, Greater Manchester, when they were both married and living in Surrey in 1997.

Prosecuting barrister Rachel Smith said the affair continued until February 2003 when Mr Johnston returned to his wife.

His jilted lover was furious and began plotting to win him back by having his wife killed, the court heard.

Hayley Johnston tried to hire a hitman through an ex-prisoner who she had interviewed for a job at the Leeds cleaning firm where she worked.

But he went to the police and officers launched an undercover operation.

She was arrested on 19 May, 2003.

'Living hell'

Johnston, who pleaded guilty at Manchester Crown Court on 6 October, was described as a "very dangerous woman" by Greater Manchester Police.

Detective Inspector Bill Beddows: "She was prepared to pay a complete stranger to kill her lover's wife and was more than willing to go through with the deal.

"The impact this has had on Rosalynd Johnston and her family is un-imaginable, we must not forget she is the innocent victim in all of this."

In a statement, Rosalynd Johnston said: "Since the police came to tell me what they had uncovered it has been a living hell, I still can't believe she thought she could get away with this.

"The thought that she wanted to have me killed and leave my children without their mother is terrifying; how could someone plan to do something like this?

"I only hope now that we can begin to get on with our lives and put this whole mess behind us."