A man has been found guilty of murdering his parents in a brutal attack last November.

Lee Tipping 36, of South Ribble murdered both his parents by stabbing them hundreds of times. He stabbed his father, 60-year-old Anthony Tipping at least 131 times and his mother 57-year-old Patricia Livesey at least 153 times.

Friends and family of the couple became concerned when Patricia didn’t turn up at her mother’s for a regular lunch appointment and they couldn’t get hold of either of them on the phone.

Police were called to their home address, where Lee Tipping and his parents lived together on Cann Bridge Street in Higher Walton, Preston at 14:50 on Saturday 20 November 2020.

At the address, police found the couple dead upstairs. They had both been stabbed a number of times in the head, neck and body. Anthony also had deep penetrating wounds to his nose, ear and eyes and stab wounds to his genitals, inflicted after his death.

Neighbours told the police they had heard banging and shouting coming from the address the night before, including hearing Patricia telling Lee to stop and calling for help. What the neighbours heard was Lee Tipping stabbing both his parents multiple times.

Lee Tipping, having fled the address following the attack, went to Liverpool airport, planning to board a flight, but returned home when he realised he didn’t have his covid pass. He later went to Manchester airport, but again did not board a flight, as he thought the police may be looking for him. He instead headed to a nearby hotel in Manchester, where police later arrested him.

In police interview he admitted that he had stabbed both parents, but gave various accounts of his reason why he did so. In one account he said his father had bullied him all his life and he stabbed him in self-defence, in another he said that his father had attacked his mother so he stabbed him in defence of his mother. When asked why he stabbed his mother, he said it was because she tried to stop the attack on his father and would have reported him to the police, so he stabbed her too.

Lee Tipping was known to have mental health issues, having been diagnosed with Paranoid Schizophrenia around 17 years ago and hospitalised twice. He had previously claimed his responsibility was diminished when he stabbed his parents to death but when two independent psychiatrists failed to support his assertion, it wasn’t taken any further. His defence at trial was that he was acting in self-defence and suffered a loss of control when he stabbed his father and he had suffered a loss of control in stabbing his mother.

After considering all the evidence against him, the jury found Lee Tipping guilty of murdering his mother Patricia and his father Anthony. He will be sentenced in July at Preston Crown Court.

Jim Mowbray, Senior Crown Prosecutor with CPS North West said: “Lee Tipping carried out a violent and brutal attack on both his parents, intending to kill them both.

“He showed them no mercy whilst he stabbed them hundreds of times. He then attempted to leave the country and when arrested, he provided a fabricated account in an attempt to absolve himself of responsibility for his actions.

“The CPS worked with Lancashire police to put a strong case before the jury, including witness testimony, forensic evidence, cell site analysis to show Lee Tipping`s movements before, during and after the murders and psychiatric reports to refute the various claims that he had put forward to explain his actions. After carefully considering the overwhelming evidence against him the jury convicted him of both murders.

“I hope following today’s verdicts, Anthony and Patricia’s family and friends can begin to move on with their lives knowing justice has been done. My thoughts are with them at this time.”