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LIFE: Love-Bombed, Then Killed

📅 13 November 2026

On Monday 9 November 2026, Jack Johns, 53, was jailed for life at Leeds Crown Court — minimum 29 years — for murdering his fiancée, Gosia Wiktor, 51, just six months into their relationship. The judge’s words to him said it all: “You are, Jack Johns, an extremely dangerous man.”

Gosia was found at her home on Foster Square, Belle Isle, Leeds, on 11 June 2026, after colleagues raised the alarm with her son Gracjan when she did not arrive for work. The court heard Johns had “love bombed” her — constant affection, gifts, a proposal within three months — before the control set in: telling her what to wear, watching her texts, leaving her feeling “suffocated”. By May she had begun to fear him.

What Gosia never knew: Johns had changed his name from Colin French after convictions against two previous partners. In 2006 he set fire to his ex-girlfriend’s home while she and her family were inside, and was given an IPP sentence. In 2016 he tried to kidnap his estranged wife — hiding in the boot of her car until she smelled his aftershave. His time on licence ended in 2024.

Judge Tom Bayliss KC said there were “classic markers of coercing and controlling behaviour” and called the murder “the final assertion of control”. Johns pleaded guilty on 30 September 2026 — there was no trial — and refused to discuss the circumstances of Gosia’s death.

Her son Gracjan said she was “the kindest, most loving and trusting person I have ever known”. Her sister Anna said: “Something died in every one of us that day.” Detective Inspector Hannah Dixon’s message: under Clare’s Law you can ask the police about a partner’s past — and so can a close friend, neighbour or family member.

Chapters: 00:07 LIFE: Love-Bombed, Then Killed · 01:09 The Morning of 11 June · 02:17 Gosia · 03:14 Love Bombing · 04:41 The Name Change · 05:34 2006: The Fire · 06:21 2016: The Boot · 07:28 The Plea · 08:09 The Judge’s Words · 09:21 Clare’s Law.

Sources: West Yorkshire Police — “Man jailed for life for murder of Gosia Wiktor, Leeds”, 9 Nov 2026; West Yorkshire Police — “Man admits murdering his partner in Leeds”, 30 Sep 2026; BBC News (Steve Jones) — “Leeds man who killed fiancee after ‘love bombing’ her jailed”, 9 Nov 2026; The Law Pages — Criminal Sentencing Record, Jack Johns, Leeds Crown Court, case 13XC0014126; NZ Herald (Daily Telegraph syndication) — 2016 Colin French kidnap trial, 4 Jul 2016; Photos: West Yorkshire Police / BBC News; Map: © OpenStreetMap contributors.

Watch the full film above — the complete story, from the morning of 11 June to the life sentence. He changed his name. He hid his past. Would you ask about a partner’s past under Clare’s Law? Tell us in the comments.