Jealous husband faces life in jail for murdering estranged wife by dousing her with petrol and setting her on fire
- Valentina Cozma, 40, body had been so contorted by the blaze so she looked like a ‘wax figure’
- Georgian Constantin, 42 was found guilt at Stafford Crown Court on Thursday
A jealous husband is looking at life imprisonment for the brutal murder of his estranged wife after he doused her in petrol and set her alight.
The charred body of mother Valentina Cozma, 40, was discovered horrifically murdered by Georgian Constantin, 42, on February 9 after emergency services were called to her house on Campbell Road, in Stoke-on-Trent.
One fireman reported that her body had been so contorted from the blaze that she looked like a ‘wax figure’.
Detective Inspector Adrian Webb, of Staffordshire Police, said: ‘Georgian Constantin’s cruel, self-pitying and cowardly act has left a son without a mother and a father jailed for murder.’
Valentina Cozma, 40, was murdered by Georgian Constantin, 42, on February 9 when he doused her in petrol and set her alight
Constantin tricked Cozma into meeting him under the guise that he would give back the £500 that she had lent him
On the day of the attack Constantin tricked Cozma into meeting him under the guise that he would give back the £500 that she had lent him.
CCTV would later show Constantin earlier that day had filled up a jerry can with petrol – even though he does not own a car.
Constantin, who admitted attacking her in a Facebook post that was later deleted, also used Cozma’s phone after he killed her to threaten her new boyfriend that he had ‘sorted her out and was coming for him.’
Detectives found the jerry can in the back garden and the bottle cap contained Constantin’s DNA.
He was arrested five days after the murder, 150 miles away in London.
Detective Inspector Adrian Webb, of Staffordshire Police, said after the case: ‘Valentina worked tirelessly to attempt to make a better life for her son.
‘I can’t imagine how her murder, when he was just 16, has impacted on him.
‘Georgian Constantin’s cruel, self-pitying and cowardly act has left a son without a mother and a father jailed for murder.
‘Valentina sought a happier life and Constantin made sure that was never going to happen.
The scene discovered by emergency services was so horrifying that one fireman reported how her body had been so contorted by the blaze that she looked like a ‘wax figure’.
‘Constantin murdered his ex-wife by setting her on fire. He made no attempt to assist her or seek help.
‘Instead, he threatened to kill Valentina’s new partner before running off to London.
‘He thought he could use false details, dispose of phones and hide on the streets of London after murdering his ex-wife.
‘He underestimated our determination to seek justice for Valentina.
‘Throughout the trial, Constantin has sought to taint and derogate Valentina, a woman he said he loved.
‘He made unsubstantiated claims that she was unfaithful, that she had many boyfriends and that her mind had been twisted.
‘He tried to convince the jury that Valentina was to blame for her own death.
‘Valentina never had a voice in this trial but her family and friends described a her as a loving, hard-working mother who was “looking forward to the future”‘.
They said she tried her best to help and support her ex-husband who gambled away the family’s money.
‘I would like to thank the jury for their time and careful consideration, and Valentina’s son, family for their support during this trial, with some providing evidence from Italy and Romania, and for the neighbours and members of the public for their bravery and selflessness in trying to save Valentina’s life.
‘I would like to recognise the dedication and hard work of my colleagues who worked tirelessly and professionally during the search for Constantin and the subsequent investigation.’
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