Missing chef Claudia Lawrence's best friend murdered, shocked mum reveals

The mum of Claudia Lawrence has told how she sobbed in agony after discovering her daughter’s childhood best friend had been murdered and recalled how “inseparable” they were as children

The mum of Claudia Lawrence has told how she sobbed in agony after discovering her daughter’s childhood best friend had been murdered.

She revealed how Lisa Welford followed missing chef Claudia around like "a shadow' and they became “inseparable” as children. But Joan was left horrified to discover the fate of that once "joyful" girl who went on family holidays with them. The 49-year-old was murdered by her abusive former partner - her head forced under the water causing a cardiac arrest.

“I was devastated. I felt numb with shock. How could two children that had grown up together have such terrible things happen to them,” she told The Mirror.

Lisa’s abusive partner, Vincent Morgan, 47, drowned her in the river Derwent in April, just a few minutes from Joan’s home in Malton, North Yorkshire. Police have since revealed he had a “long history” of domestic abuse and was given three domestic violence prevention orders (DVPO), used when there is insufficient evidence to charge. He was on bail with the condition to stay away from Lisa when he killed her.

Horrified Joan, 81, described Lisa and Claudia as a pair of “angels” adding: “They were the best of friends from starting school. Lisa was like Claudia’s shadow. They went everywhere together. They were very close and got on so well. It was such a happy friendship.”

About the moment she discovered it was Lisa who had been killed, she said: “I just couldn’t believe it. I didn’t cope well at all. I went home and sobbed, as I thought about that little girl who had been such a big part of our lives for so long. I still haven’t walked past that section of the river. I can never walk there again. I saw the police divers on the news. It was just so difficult to think about.”

She told how months later another woman, Victoria Taylor, was found dead after she drowned in the same river.

Shocked Joan said: “It just feels so sad that two women have died so close to where I live. Every time I hear of another woman locally going missing or her body being found, it makes me think of Claudia. Until a name is released, I panic and worry it is Claudia. Afterwards when I discover it isn’t Claudia, I always pray for their family.”

Joan explains how she finds it almost impossible to comprehend that she and Lisa’s mum Rita are now both dealing with the worst pain a parent could ever endure.

When Claudia vanished, Rita had tried to comfort Joan but now she was having to do the same: “The circumstances might be different, but we have both lost our daughters. It’s utterly heartbreaking. As mums we have been dealt the worst type of agony. No parent should ever have to endure what we are suffering.”

Joan and Lisa’s mum, Rita Welford, have known each other since their daughters started school when they were four-years-old. They both attended St Andrews, a private infant and junior school and afterwards attended York College for Girls.

“I took a card and flowers straight away for Rita and left them at her door. Rita called me afterwards. She was in such a daze, as though she was in another world. Understandably, she was in deep shock. All I could do for Rita was listen as she explained that Lisa was gone.

“I was heartbroken for her. I couldn’t believe we had both lost our daughters. Those little girls that had once been so happy together.

“It brought all the pain back of when Claudia went missing. It felt like I was back at day one. It’s such a crushing, all consuming pain.

“I also knew Claudia would have been devastated to hear about Lisa, as Lisa was when Claudia went missing. She would be crushed.

“In the months that followed Rita often said to me ‘I think they will be together now’. I completely understand but it’s hard. I can’t think of Claudia not being alive, but I know the thought of our daughters being together brings Rita so much comfort.

“I felt bereft for Rita. Her pain was visceral. She was suffering so much. I felt physically sick to think about what Lisa had gone through. I still do. I know Rita was just broken by how her daughter had died...There we were, two mums together, trying to understand how things had turned out the way they had for our daughters.”

Joan recalls after Claudia disappeared in March 2009, how Rita was there for her. “She came to see me and was a tower of support. Rita would come and visit me and talk to me. She was always there with a hug and a shoulder to cry on. Rita explained Lisa was heartbroken. She couldn’t believe Claudia had disappeared.”

Joan said Lisa’s parents, Rita and Roy, owned a farm and Claudia always loved animals, “so she loved going to play there” and remembered: “The girls would spend hours just playing out in the fields. Like most best friends they were inseparable. They would go to each other’s birthday parties every year.

“It was such a special day. Claudia and Lisa looked lovely. They were dressed all in white with veils, like angels. It was a beautiful occasion.”

Later both families started going on holiday together in Torquay and “the girls loved it,” recalls Joan: “They would go swimming together. They loved the pool, and we would take them on boat trips or to the nearby miniature village. They would also go riding together and play tennis in the nearby courts.

“On other days, I would spend hours teaching them to paint. Other children would join us, and we would spend whole afternoons sat under a tree with an easel and paper.” The families went on two or three holidays together, while the girls were at school together.

Claudia and Lisa remained friends after they left school, but their lives moved in different directions, so they didn’t see as much of one another. Lisa trained to be an electrician and Claudia became a chef.

Lisa’s dad, Roy, passed away, around a decade after Lisa and Claudia started their careers, after he suffered a massive heart attack. “Claudia was devastated,” said Joan. “She really adored Roy. We all went to the funeral and Claudia was there to offer comfort to Lisa.”

Joan tells of being horrified about what happened to Lisa at the hands of a domestic abuser and says she hopes women suffering any form of domestic abuse will get help: "Women have suffered for far too long at the hands of men. Also, the emphasis should be on the men not being abusive, as opposed to the women being forced to try and find a way out.”

Looking forward Joan fears for Lisa’s mum and family as she knows how hard this Christmas will be. She said: “Every year I dread Christmas without Claudia. My daughter, like Lisa, should be here. There’s always a missing place at the table.

“Each day can feel like such a mountain to climb. I have found small comforts, though. I visit Claudia’s house every fortnight. There is a tiny Robin that appears in the back garden every time I am there. There’s an old saying which states ‘if a Robin is here, a loved one is near’. It makes me feel closer to Claudia in a small way. You have to take joy out of the smallest of things to ensure you get through every day.

For confidential support, call the 24-hour National Domestic Abuse Freephone Helpline on 0808 2000 247 or visit womensaid.co.uk. If you or your family have lost a friend or family member through fatal domestic abuse, AAFDA (Advocacy After Fatal Domestic Abuse) can offer specialist and expert support and advocacy. For more info visit www.aafda.org.uk