A 27-year-old man has been jailed for life for stabbing his grandmother to death in a brutal attack in Helston. Devon & Cornwall Police just released the body-cam footage of him being arrested on their social media account.

Cameron Dancey-Stevenson was sentenced at Exeter Crown Court on Wednesday 30 August for the murder of 62-year-old Alison Stevenson at her home.

Dancey-Stevenson, who denied the offence but was found guilty by a jury following a trial, must serve a minimum of 18 years in prison, minus time already spent on remand.

The court heard how police were called to an address in Meneage Road on Tuesday 25 May 2021 after Mrs Stevenson had been discovered seriously injured.

Both the police and ambulance service attended the scene, but Mrs Stevenson was pronounced deceased after sustaining multiple knife wounds to her neck.

Following searches of the Helston area, Dancey-Stevenson was arrested and interviewed. He denied murdering his grandmother, creating a story of how he had been present at the house when a stranger broke into the property and killed her.

Following extensive forensic enquiries, Dancey-Stevenson was charged with murder on Thursday 11 November 2021 and was remanded in custody. 

The court was told that, prior to the attack, there had been a documented history of violence resulting in a protection of harassment order being put in place preventing Dancey-Stevenson from contacting his grandmother. At the time of the murder, he had been convicted of breaching the order and was awaiting sentence.

Dancey-Stevenson had originally been deemed unfit to stand trial, but was later considered to be fit and the three-week trial opened on Monday 14 August 2023.  

The jury found Dancey-Stevenson guilty of murder on Tuesday 29 August after a short deliberation.

Paying tribute to Mrs Stevenson, her family said: “Alison was a kind, caring and generous lady. She would do anything for anyone and she always had time for people.

“Her passing has left a gaping hole, not only in our hearts, but in the lives of so many people, whom over the years she touched.

“She will be sorely missed and always remembered by all those who loved her.”        

Detective Chief Inspector Lee Nattrass said: “The family and friends of Alison have had to endure the most tragic loss imaginable and in the saddest of circumstances.  

“It has been a lengthy process to get to this stage and I would like to thank them for their dignified assistance in the investigation and their composure despite the delays.  

“My thoughts, and those of the entire investigation team, are with them at this time.”  

(Source: Devon & Cornwall Police)