Man admits ‘ambush’ murder of artist who went missing walking her dog

Claire Knights, 54, was found dead in Kent following a two-day search.

Claire Knights, 54, was reported missing on Wednesday August 23 2023 and was discovered dead by her family between St Nicholas at Wade and Minnis Bay (Kent Police/PA) (PA Media)

A man has admitted murdering an artist after he ambushed her walking her dog on a Kent beach.

Claire Knights, 54, was reported missing on Wednesday August 23 2023 and was discovered dead by her family between St Nicholas at Wade and Minnis Bay, while they were carrying out searches for her on Friday August 25.

The mother from Upstreet, near Canterbury, was believed to have been walking her white and brown spaniel called Zebulon, to the Minnis Bay area of Birchington before the attack.

At a hearing at Canterbury Crown Court on Tuesday, Harrison Lawrence Van-Pooss appeared via video link and pleaded guilty to Ms Knights’ murder.

According to the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS), Van-Pooss, who did not know Ms Knights, ambushed her while she walked back to her car from the beach and then concealed her body.

He then took her dog, which was still with him when he was later arrested by police, to a nearby shop and bought it treats.

The 21-year-old, of Margate, also pleaded guilty to an offence of upskirting, by using a mobile phone under a woman’s clothing without her consent for the purpose of sexual gratification, in a separate incident the day before the murder on August 22.

The CPS added that once he was confronted over the incident and the police were called, he went on the run.

The pleas came ahead of a trial set for the case in March next year, after it was pushed back from June this year.

It also follows a number of medical reports and mental health assessments.

In June, the prosecution suggested Van-Pooss could have been lying as he gave an account weeks before the trial that he met Ms Knights out walking and became angry because of a “sexual advance” from her.

The prosecution also said the defendant had been “manipulating” self-reporting assessments but the defence asked for more time to explore a raft of issues and not rush through the process.

Stephen Moses KC, defending Van-Pooss, told the court on Tuesday it was accepted the partial defence of diminished responsibility was not met after a further report seen in November.

He also said that Van-Pooss’s previous account of Ms Knights that day must have been a forced memory.

Reacting to the conviction, senior crown prosecutor from CPS South East, Natalie Smith, said: “We hope that today’s guilty plea brings some small comfort to Claire’s family and friends, knowing that the man who murdered her has finally acknowledged and taken responsibility for his horrendous actions on that fateful day.

“Now that the defence team have had the opportunity to fully consider whether Harrison Lawrence Van-Pooss had any mental health defence to the charge of murder, they have agreed with the prosecution expert witness that he does not have any defence available to him.

“This has finally, after all these months of uncertainty, led to today’s guilty plea to the murder of Claire Knights.”

She added: “Sadly Claire’s murder is a tragic reminder of the violence against women and girls which exists in our society today.”

In the opening of Ms Knights’ inquest last year, coroner Catherine Wood said the initial given cause of death was blunt-force injury and drowning.

Following her death, a family statement released by Kent Police said: “Claire was a loving mum, partner, daughter and sister. An amazing contemporary artist, a trailblazer in life.

“She loved animals and in particular her springer spaniel, Zebulon.

“We, the family, are struggling to come to terms with the fact she is no longer with us. We wish to thank friends and the community for their active support and kind words.”

Art school The Margate School also paid tribute to Ms Knights, saying: “She was an outstanding and exceptional artist, whose work reflected her complex, loving nature.

“Her sculptural work had elements of humour and wit alongside the determination.”

The sentencing for Van-Pooss may take up to two days on dates to be set in the new year.