A MAN who was originally acquitted of the murder of his wife on the grounds of self-defence has been found guilty of her murder after new evidence came to light, resulting in a re-trial which concluded on December 12.

Following an eight-week re-trial at the Inner Crown Court in London, Robert Rhodes, 52 (DOB: 20/6/1973), from Withleigh, near Tiverton, was convicted of the murder of his wife Dawn on June 2, 2016 after the jury returned a unanimous verdict.

Rhodes was also found guilty of child cruelty by inflicting a wound to a child under 10 (who cannot be named for legal reasons), in an attempt to cover up this crime; guilty of perverting the course of justice by causing injuries to himself and the child, and by manipulating the child to cause them to injure him in an attempt to cover up this crime; and guilty of perjury at the Central Criminal Court in London in 2017 and perjury at the family court in 2018 for falsely giving evidence that he knew was untrue.

The court heard how Rhodes had originally been charged with Dawn’s murder but was acquitted in May 2017 following a trial at the Central Criminal Court in London after the jury believed his account that he had acted in self-defence and that Dawn had tried to attack him first.

In November 2021, a main witness in the trial, the child under 10, told their therapist that their father had planned Dawn’s murder and had manipulated them into being involved in it, which Rhodes described as “our plan”, and then made them lie about how their mother had died.

Following an application to the Court of Appeal in November 2024, the acquittal was quashed, and permission was granted for a retrial for the offence of murder.

Rhodes was also charged with child cruelty, perjury and perverting the course of justice.

During the trial, the court heard how that prior to Dawn’s death on June 2, 2016, the marriage between her and Rhodes had been in difficulty and he had filed for divorce.

At 7.34pm on June 2, the child made a 999 call to police, during which Rhodes said that his wife had attacked him and their child with a knife, and that he had acted in self-defence.

When police attended, they found Dawn Rhodes lying on the kitchen floor. Her throat had been cut, to the extent it had severed all the structures in her neck.

Rhodes told police that Dawn had hit him twice on the back of the head. The child showed officers a deep laceration to their arm which they said had been caused by their mother.

Rhodes was arrested for murder that evening. During his police interview, he said that he and Dawn had been arguing in the kitchen when she picked up a knife and swung it towards the child, at which point he told the child to go upstairs.

He said that managed to get hold of the knife from Dawn and that she came at him in a fury, and he swung at her with the knife, making contact with her neck, before he ran upstairs and called police.

When the child was interviewed, they gave an account consistent with the one Rhodes had given as to how the injuries they had suffered had been inflicted.

Following a lengthy investigation, Rhodes was charged was murder and stood trial in May 2017.

The jury reached a majority verdict, finding Rhodes not guilty of murder on May 30, 2017.

After coming forward in November 2021, the child was interviewed and described how their father had caused the relationship with their mother to deteriorate and how he had manipulated them into helping Rhodes get rid of their mother.

The child also told police that during supervised contact with Rhodes in 2016 and 2017 (while he was on bail after being charged with Dawn’s murder), he had told them that they had “got some things wrong” and continued to give them instructions to stick to the plan.

Rhodes continued to manipulate and groom the child, even going as far as to hide a phone at his mother’s house when the child visited, on which he would leave messages reminding them about the agreement they had made to get rid of Dawn.

Senior Investigating Officer Detective Chief Inspector Kimball Edey, from the Surrey and Sussex Police Major Crime Team, said: “I would like to extend my heartfelt condolences to the family and friends of Dawn Rhodes. The loss they have suffered is immeasurable and cannot be underestimated.

“They have also had to deal with the fact that Robert Rhodes got away with murder for nine years, all the while knowing the misery and suffering he had inflicted on Dawn, not just on the night he killed her, but also leading up to her death.

“During the first trial, Dawn was portrayed as the villain but had actually been a victim of domestic abuse and coercive control at the hands of her husband for years.

“The fact that Rhodes not only murdered his wife in cold blood but then manipulated and groomed his own child to play a part in his evil scheme and cover up what he had done is simply despicable - not only did he take a life; he irreparably damaged another, as well as the lives of everyone else who loved Dawn.

“The fact that the child came forward nine years after their mother’s death to tell the truth about what happened is remarkable and shows enormous bravery.

“While it should be acknowledged that the child was under the age of criminal responsibility at the time of Dawn’s death and that they were not responsible for the acts that Rhodes manipulated them into doing, the realisation that they were complicit in Dawn’s death and coming forward to set the record straight nine years later, is nothing short of extraordinary.”

DCI Edey continued: “I would like to thank the investigation team for their tireless work in leaving no stone unturned to ensure Rhodes was brought to justice today, and a very special mention must be made to the family liaison officers who went above and beyond to assist the families throughout this investigation.

“I would also like to thank our partner agencies, particularly the Crown Prosecution Service.”

He added: “Lastly, I would like to thank the witnesses who assisted in giving evidence which helped to bring out the truth of the events from 2016, helping to piece together Robert Rhodes’ web of deceit, and the jury for their careful consideration of the evidence which has been presented throughout this trial.''

Robert Rhodes will be sentenced at Inner London Crown Court on Friday, January 16.

Liz Spencer, Dawn’s mother, and Kirsty Spencer (Dawn’s sister) said in a tribute: “In murdering Dawn, he took away a kind-hearted person whose life and generosity of spirit was never-ending.

“Despite the fact his lies and deception were for so long believed by so many we knew the truth in our hearts and souls.

“We grieved for Dawn in the shadows with the support of only a few who saw through his deceit. She was everything to us and he is nothing, she will be celebrated and he will be forgotten.”

Paying tribute to Dawn, her mother Liz said: “Dawn was a loving daughter, sister and mother. Being a mother was what brought joy to Dawn, she always wanted to be a mother and was delighted when she had her children.

“Dawn was caring, capable and strong. She would do anything for anyone and was loved by both friends and family.

“Dawn was an organiser and very much a people person. She would organise local charity events to include the community and her colleagues where she worked at the Raven Housing Trust. She would always be involved in the organisation of work social events, especially around Christmas time. Dawn was loved by all her peers.

“During her life, Dawn was looking for someone to build a life with. She was looking for someone to love and be loved by someone to trust and be trusted by and someone to respect and be respected by.”

Kirsty, Dawn’s sister, said: “There cannot be justice for Dawn because she is dead. The only acknowledgment I make is that for the first time in years, Dawn’s voice has finally been heard.

“Dawn’s children and I have huge capacity for love. The events of her death have made it difficult to navigate a family life, but we have found a path. We will continue to love and be loved for the future evermore.

“I know my sister would want us to find freedom, a freedom that she was deprived of. It is because of her and the love she had for her children, family and friends that we will continue.

“Dawn was my sister and I loved her dearly.”

Paying tribute to Dawn, her brother Darren said: “Dawn was my little sister and although we were a few years apart, I would have done anything for her. Our children were extremely close growing up as cousins and as well as my own loss, I have also had to watch my children suffer the loss of their auntie.

"Dawn was a very capable woman but unfortunately went through hell in the last few years of her life. The pressures on her at the time meant that she wasn’t the Dawn we all knew, and the last few times we saw her before she was taken from us, she was at the end of her tether.

"Despite what she was going through, Dawn massively loved her children – they were her world. She also loved Christmas; to her, it was the be-all and end-all, the most magical time of the year, and she always threw herself into everything she did.

“There are no words we can use to make sense of this horrific situation. We struggle to comprehend the mindset of an individual so twisted as to even contemplate this as a solution to his own unhappiness, implicating a child under 10 in the process. The lack of foresight and disregard not only for his own family but also for the wider, extended family is beyond belief.

“If anything can be learnt from this, it’s that I wish for any woman going through what Dawn went through is to have easier access and knowledge of the support available for women involved in abusive and controlling relationships.

“We would ask that people appreciate this has been an extremely tragic and challenging number of years for the family and that we are left alone to grieve for Dawn in peace now that justice has finally been served.”