![\"Gil](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/4JU1PXJ_RNZ_4257_jpg.jpeg\")
<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
\nGil Elliott.
\nPhoto: RNZ \/ Nate McKinnon\n<\/p>\n
Gil Elliott fears his daughter’s murderer may kill again if given a chance at freedom.<\/p>\n
Clayton Weatherston was a 32-year-old economics tutor at Otago University, who had taught and had been in a relationship with<\/a> honours student Sophie Elliott.<\/p>\n The 22-year-old had left Weatherston and on 9 January 2008 was packing up her life to move to Wellington to take up a job at Treasury.<\/p>\n Weatherston arrived at her family’s home in the Dunedin suburb of Ravensbourne armed with a knife.<\/p>\n He stabbed her to death<\/a> so viciously the knife broke and Weatherston also used a pair of scissors in the frenzy.<\/p>\n At trial he tried to blame the attack on Sophie, claiming the partial defence of provocation.<\/p>\n Her death shocked New Zealand and Weatherston’s antics at trial outraged the nation, leading to the partial defence of provocation being abolished<\/a> by statute.<\/p>\n Gil Elliott said while Sophie’s death was 18 years ago, it felt like little time had passed at all.<\/p>\n “The 18 years just seems to have gone by in a flash, quite honestly,” Elliott said.<\/p>\n “It won’t have for him, no doubt. It’s probably been a bit of a grind for him, but too bad.”<\/p>\n Now Elliott was facing the possibility of Weatherston being released on parole.<\/p>\n The now 50-year-old murderer would appear before the Parole Board for the first time on Friday.<\/p>\n “We don’t have Sophie – it’s terrible to think about it,” Elliott said.<\/p>\n “She was such a lovely person too and she was absolutely innocent. There was no reason for him to do what he did to her.<\/p>\n “He didn’t just kill – he butchered her. I mean 216 times, seven blunt force injuries, he must have bashed her as well. And then to mutilate her when she was dead.”<\/p>\n \nSophie Elliott. Weatherston had not acknowledged his guilt or offered an apology in his 18 years behind bars, Elliott said.<\/p>\n He was a narcissist and a danger to society, Elliott said.<\/p>\n “He’s not necessarily going to be in there forever and a day. I mean, that’s the problem with our system – he eventually probably will get out.<\/p>\n “So he didn’t get a life sentence, did he? He got denied his freedom for 18 years, but it hasn’t cost him a cent.<\/p>\n “It’s cost our family a hell of a lot in emotional harm and financial harm as well. The taxpayer forked out all this money to give him a trial, allow him to appeal, and then lock him up.”<\/p>\n Elliott said he feared Weatherston had parallels to Paul Wilson, who was also known as Paul Tainui.<\/p>\n Wilson spent more than 16 years behind bars for sexual assault and murder.<\/p>\n![\"Sophie](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/4UFGG99_Sophie_photo_for_ODT_JPG.jpeg\")
<\/p>\n
\nPhoto: Gil Elliott\n<\/p>\n