Belfast man sentenced to life for killing heavily pregnant partner in Donaghadee

Zak Hughes, a personal trainer from north Belfast, admitted to murdering his 27-year-old partner Sarah Montgomery, who was 32 weeks pregnant, in her Donaghadee flat last year. The attack, carried out with a water bottle she had given him, lasted about 19 minutes and resulted in at least 59 blunt-force injuries, leading to her death and the destruction of the unborn child. Evidence included a phone recording, CCTV footage and Hughes' own confession; he later fled the scene, changed clothes, and even attended his fiancée’s baby shower.

During sentencing, Madam Justice McBride noted the case’s severity and compared it to a similar 2022 femicide, emphasizing that such violence remains a critical issue. Hughes received a mandatory life sentence, with a tariff to be set at a later hearing.