03 October 2023 , 16:44
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Singer Joss Stone was known for her hippy aesthetic and soul-baring tunes, but in 2011 her laid-back demeanour was rattled after she was subject of a terrifying murder plot. The grammy award-winning songstress, then 24, was living in her childhood home in Cullompton, Devon, alone after her mother, Wendy Joseph, moved to Exeter.
However, the idyllic parish town was rocked on 13 May 2011 when Kevin Liverpool and Junior Bradshaw from Manchester were arrested in Cullompton after residents reported their suspicious activity.
In the men’s car police found two hammers, gaffer tape, a metal spike, lock knives, gloves and a balaclava. They were also found in possession of handwritten notes detailing their plan to behead the soul singer, dump her body in a river and burgle her house.
The would-be murderers had crashed their car at M5 services north of Bristol, and then got lost on their way to Joss’ home, and even dared to ask a local postman for directions directly to the singer's house while driving their damaged vehicle.
Kevin Liverpool (L) and Junior Bradshaw (R) who were found guilty of conspiracy to rob and murder British singer Joss Stone (Getty)The court heard that Liverpool was obsessed with the singer and in the run-up to the bungled plot had researched her in the library and persuaded his flat mate Bradshaw, who has a low IQ, to help. Bradshaw was initially sentenced to his 18-years in prison, and Liverpool was sentenced to life with a minimum of 10 years and eight months. However in 2014 the pair appealed and Bradshaw’s stint in jail was cut to 10 years, whereas Liverpool’s minimum was reduced to six-and-a-half years.
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The court of appeal judge explained that this reduction was because Joss had not known about the plot before it happened, explaining there was no evidence that Ms Stone had suffered “physical or psychological harm". The judge added, “Ms Stone... did not hear of the conspiracy until after the defendant’s arrest and when asked what the consequences had been for her told the jury that she was now careful not to leave the door unlocked when she went out."
Joss now lives in Nashville with her partner Cody (Instagram)
Joss and boyfriend Cody have two children, pictured here with son Shackleton (Instagram)Joss - who relocated to Nashville, Tennessee, in 2022 - explained to the Sunday Times that the plot has made her be more cautious when it comes to security. “What happened to me in 2011 has made me lock my doors and have an alarm system, whereas I didn’t before,” said the 36-year-old.
She went onto explain that her partner Amazon staffer Cody Cody DaLuz. - with whom she shares daughter Violet, two and baby son Shackleton - is “so mellow." She added, “He says, ‘Oh, we don’t need to worry about that,’ and I’m, like, ‘Well, you know, people do sometimes try to kill you.’
Then he says, ‘Oh yeah, that small thing.’ That’s not a positive thought, so it does make you safety conscious. Although that’s another blessing, isn’t it? Because I wasn’t before and now I am. But out in Nashville I know those men are not here, so I feel so much safer. Cody worked in security, so he’s the best person to have around.”