Gemma McCluskie was just 29 years old when she was brutally murdered by her brother Tony McCluskie in a crime that shocked the nation
It’s a story that could have been lifted straight from an EastEnders plotline, but tragically, the murder of BBC soap star Gemma McCluskie was all too real. The chilling tale of how Gemma, just 29 at the time, was brutally killed by her own brother is now being explored in ITV’s new true crime documentary, Murder in the Family: True Crime Presents.
Born in Shoreditch, London, on February 5, 1983, Gemma pursued a career in acting, appearing in children’s series No Sweat before securing her role as Kerry Skinner in EastEnders. From 2000 to 2001, she portrayed Ethel Skinner’s great-niece and was romantically linked with Robbie Jackson, played by Dean Gaffney.
However, Gemma’s life was tragically cut short when her brother, Tony McCluskie, murdered her during a dispute over an overflowing bath on March 1, 2012. McCluskie, then 35, attacked his sister in their shared Shoreditch flat.
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The court heard how the skunk addict, who smoked 15 joints a day, struck her on the head at least twice before dismembering her body and disposing of it in a canal. Initially treated as a missing person case after her killer reported her disappearance, Gemma’s torso was discovered stuffed in a suitcase in Regent’s Canal five days later by a passing barge operator.
Tony McCluskie was subsequently arrested on suspicion of murder, and a search of their flat revealed bloodstains in the bathroom and kitchen, along with a missing knife, reports Plymouth Live.
CCTV footage from the day Gemma disappeared revealed him hauling a hefty suitcase into a taxi. Tony MCluskie eventually confessed to murdering his sister during a 2013 trial at the Old Bailey.
However, he maintained that he had no recollection of the act and claimed she had assaulted him first. Despite pleading guilty to manslaughter, the jury, with an 11 to 1 majority, found him guilty of murder.
The window cleaner was sentenced to life imprisonment with a minimum term of 20 years.
Murder in the Family: True Crime Presents featuring Gemma McCluskie’s story is on ITV1 on Friday, March 7 at 9pm. It will also be available to stream at a later date on ITVX along with previous episodes
Source: Celebrities - dailystar.co.uk
