A 33-year-old pregnant woman, Amber O’Brien, was stabbed more than 60 times and found dead in the bathroom of her partner’s flat in Blackley, north Manchester, on April 19, 2026, Manchester Crown Court has heard.
O’Brien was nine weeks pregnant with twins when she died. Her partner, Stephan Garner, 31, has admitted killing her but denies murder, pleading guilty to manslaughter as his trial continues.
The prosecution alleges that he killed her following an argument in the early hours of April 18.
According to the Daily Mail, prosecutor Nigel Power KC told the court that O’Brien suffered more than 60 stab, incised and puncture wounds, including 32 to her face and neck. He said Garner was the only person alive who could explain exactly how she died.
O’Brien’s body was discovered shortly before 6pm on April 19 in the eighth-floor flat where she had been living with Garner. The court heard that she was naked, covered with a blue tarpaulin and lying in water on the bathroom floor. She was reportedly cold to the touch when found.
Power told the court that Garner spent the period after the killing cleaning the flat, washing O’Brien’s body, bleaching surfaces, disposing of bloodstained clothing and destroying her telephone.
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👉 JOIN GISTSMATE WHATSAPP CHANNELHe also allegedly disposed of his own phone.
The prosecutor said Garner told a relative that he had been “cleaning up” the bathroom. The court heard that he had bought bleach and scouring sponges from Poundland.
Police forced their way into the flat shortly after 6pm on April 19 following reports that Garner had told his cousin he had “stabbed her in the neck twice”. Officers reportedly noticed an overpowering smell of bleach when they entered the property.
Garner was arrested at about 7pm that day. Prosecutors said he was interviewed twice by police but made no comment on both occasions.
The court heard that O’Brien and Garner had been in a relationship for about three months before her death. O’Brien had told her brother that they argued frequently over minor issues and that she was unhappy with Garner’s mood swings.
About two weeks before her death, she reportedly told her sibling about the relationship: “Something ain’t fitting with me.”
Jurors also heard that the couple disagreed over O’Brien’s flat in Middleton. Garner allegedly wanted her to give up the property and move in with him, but she felt pressured. She eventually moved into his flat in Blackley about three weeks before she died.
In the early hours of April 18, O’Brien called her brother and reportedly said: “I can’t stand him, I’m not staying here.”
She left the flat but later returned with Garner, the court heard.
Power acknowledged that the relationship involved conflict on both sides, telling jurors that O’Brien could be heard threatening Garner in an audio recording. However, the prosecution argued that this did not justify the violence that led to her death.
Garner is expected to argue at trial that he did not intend to cause O’Brien serious bodily harm and that he lost control during the incident.
The court was told that he is expected to claim he tried to leave the flat in the early hours of April 18, but O’Brien punched him, held a knife and told him that the babies had been aborted. These are allegations that form part of his expected defence.
The central issue for the jury is whether Garner is guilty of murder or the lesser offence of manslaughter, which he has admitted. The trial is expected to last seven days.
O’Brien’s family described her as a “beautiful soul” and a devoted daughter and sister following her death.
In a statement issued through Greater Manchester Police, the family said they were devastated by the loss and remembered her for her warm smile, kindness and ability to lift others up.
“Our hearts are broken. Amber’s memory will live on with us forever,” the family said.
The trial continues at Manchester Crown Court, where jurors are expected to hear further evidence before reaching a verdict on the murder charge.
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