The man found guilty of murdering his former partner in Stoneleigh on a school run has been handed a life sentence.

Epsom man Ricardo Godinho, 41, will serve a minimum of 27 years.

On Wednesday Mr Godinho was found guilty of murder after he stabbed and killed his former partner Aliny (Mendes) Godinho in Stoneleigh earlier this year.

As the Comet reported in February, the murder took place at the Sparrow Farm Road junction of London Road in Stoneleigh, near Ewell, on February 8.

Mrs Godinho was walking with the former couple's three-year-old daughter on the way to pick up the family's other children from school when she was stabbed by Mr Godinho, dying on the roadside a short while later.

A manhunt was launched to find Mr Godinho after one of his colleagues called 999 to inform police he had confessed to Mrs Godinho's murder.

He was arrested on suspicion of murder an hour and a half later by officers after they stopped him in Malden Road, Cheam.

Two eye witnesses were able to positively identify Mr Godinho as the attacker, and the clothing he was arrested in matched the description that was provided by witnesses at the scene.

A knife found at the scene was shown to have caused the fatal injuries Mrs Godinho sustained.

Forensic examinations linked Mr Godinho to the knife and he was charged with murder on Sunday, 10 February.

During the trial the court heard how the pair were married but had separated in late December 2018.

Throughout this time Ricardo’s behaviour towards Aliny had become increasingly intimidating.

In a statement, Mrs Godinho's family said that the impacts felt by her relatives and children since she was killed were "almost impossible" to describe.

"Aliny was a beautiful, intelligent, happy, caring woman who was loved by so many people, both in the UK, and in her home country of Brazil.

"The events of Friday 8 February 2019 took away not only a sister, daughter, grandchild and friend, but more importantly, took a loving mother away from her four small children."

Senior Investigating Officer, Detective Chief Inspector Mark Chapman, from the Specialist Crime Command, described the case as "tragic" and paid tribute to the witnesses who had contributed to the investigation.

"The attack took place in broad daylight and continues to have a traumatic effect on those who witnessed it.

"I would like to thank those who witnessed what happened for their actions in the immediate aftermath, and the wider community for the way they pulled together at such an extremely difficult time."