The Deadly 28-Mile Journey That Ended Two Lives
On a May weekend in 2021, Daniel Boulton embarked on a chilling 28-mile journey on foot. His destination was the Lincolnshire market town of Louth, where his ex-girlfriend Bethany Vincent lived. His intention, as he had chillingly declared to hostel staff, was to 'wipe out the bloodline'. Less than twenty-four hours after beginning this murderous mission, two people were dead: twenty-six-year-old Bethany and her nine-year-old son Darren Henson, affectionately known as DJ.
A Brutal Attack in Minutes
Shortly after 8pm on Monday, May 31st, Boulton kicked in the back door of Bethany's home. He found her standing in the living room, cradling their nine-month-old baby. Without hesitation, he stabbed her nine times. He then proceeded upstairs to DJ's bedroom, where he beat the young boy, smashed his teeth, and stabbed him repeatedly. The entire violent episode lasted mere minutes. Afterwards, Boulton calmly stepped outside, lit a cigarette, and walked away, leaving his infant son crawling on the floor beside his mother's lifeless body.
A Family's Unimaginable Loss and Lifelong Sentence
Today, Daniel Boulton, now thirty-four, is serving a life sentence with a minimum term of forty years. However, another life sentence is being served by Bethany's grieving parents, Caroline and Darren Vincent. In the devastating aftermath, they have not only had to mourn their daughter and grandson but have also stepped in to raise Bethany's youngest child, the baby she shared with Boulton. They face the daunting future task of explaining to this child how his mother and brother died, and that his own father was responsible.
'We worry about it a lot,' says Caroline, fifty-one. 'How do you explain not only the way they died, but that it was his own father who did it?' Their home in Chapel St Leonards is filled with photographs of Bethany and DJ, a constant reminder of what was stolen from them.
Systemic Failures and Missed Warnings
The full, horrifying story is detailed in the documentary The Skegness Psycho: 28 Miles To Murder, which raises a devastating question: how could a young mother who had done everything right—severing contact with her violent ex and obtaining two restraining orders—still end up dead?
'There have been no consequences for any of the agencies involved,' Caroline states bluntly regarding her daughter's death. 'It’s always “we will learn lessons”. But we hear that time and time again. Every time you hear about a girl murdered, it’s the same story.'
Bethany had met Boulton, a fairground worker, in early 2019. Unbeknownst to her, he already had a restraining order from a previous girlfriend and an extensive criminal record for violent offences. He quickly moved in and began isolating her from her family. His behaviour escalated from love-bombing to systematic abuse, undermining her confidence and telling her she was worthless.
Escalating Violence and Inadequate Responses
The violence became physical in late 2020. When Bethany ended the relationship in November, Boulton smashed her head against a wall. She called the police, and he was arrested and bailed. Despite this, he returned within a month and attacked her again in front of her mother, Caroline, whom he threatened directly.
Police used the Dash (Domestic Abuse, Stalking and Honour-Based Violence) risk assessment tool. Astonishingly, after Boulton's repeated breaches of bail and violent incidents, Bethany's risk level was at times downgraded to 'standard'. In early 2021, Boulton was convicted of the assaults but received only a community order and was told to attend a 'Building Better Relationships' course.
'I would love to ask that judge - if it was his own daughter, would he think that was enough?' says Caroline, her anger palpable.
The Final Fatal Chain of Events
By May 2021, Boulton was living in a homeless hostel twenty-eight miles away. Bethany, feeling safer, was excitedly planning to move closer to her family. This planned move, however, triggered Boulton's final, fatal rage. As the sentencing judge, Mr Justice Pepperall, later noted, Boulton knew that if Bethany moved, he would lose all control over her. 'If you were to kill, it had to be then,' the judge told him.
In the days before the attack, Boulton sent Bethany over nine hundred threatening Facebook messages. One read: 'I’ll never stop fighting until you give in and do as you’re f***ing told.' Another ominously stated: 'there’s going to be a nightmare on Holmes Street.'
On the afternoon of May 31st, after route-marching through the night, Boulton appeared at her door. She refused him entry. CCTV later showed him loitering, waiting for DJ to return home. The attack that followed was swift and brutal.
A Legacy of Grief and a Plea for Change
Boulton was captured after a twenty-four-hour manhunt, during which he stabbed an off-duty police officer. He was convicted in February 2022. For the Vincents, the sentence brought little comfort. Darren suffered a nervous breakdown, wrestling with guilt. They have fought for parental rights over their grandson, a battle Boulton even tried to oppose from prison.
DJ would be fourteen now. 'We’d give anything for just one hour with him,' says Darren. Their grief is compounded by fury at the systemic failures they believe left Boulton free to kill. They speak out in the hope of preventing other families from enduring similar tragedy.
'If doing so stops even one family going through what we have,' Darren says, 'then Bethany and DJ won’t have died for nothing.'
