Michael Thompson: 55-year-old murder accused treated like ‘bereaved spouse’ after ‘fooling’ police with ‘fakery’
A 55-year-old Northampton man accused of the rape and murder of his former partner was treated like a “bereaved spouse” after fooling police with “fakery” that made it appear like a suicide or a tragic accident, say the prosecution.
Michael Thompson, of Pinewood Road, pleaded not guilty to the rape and murder of 43-year-old Kimberley Thompson on August 9, 2025.
Thompson appeared at Northampton Crown Court on December 16, 2025 when he also pleaded not guilty to two additional charges of committing an act with intent to pervert the course of public justice.
The trial, which is being held at Nottingham Crown Court, is expected to last around six weeks and the jury members were sworn in last Thursday (May 21) ahead of the prosecution opening on May 26.
Continuing with the prosecution opening, Miranda Moore KC told the jury about the 999 call made by Thompson to East Midlands Ambulance Service at 5.39am on August 9, 2025.
The defendant told the emergency services that he came down in the early hours of the morning to find Kim “lifeless” with tablets and alcohol. He was advised to give Kim CPR on a flat hard surface and having had training as a doorman, Thompson would have known what to do.
First responders arrived at the house 10 minutes later at 5.49am, where they found Kim laying in bed on her back with the covers pulled up. She was cold and her blood began to pool near her back, the court heard.
Thompson was in an “emotional fashion” and Miss Moore KC said “police were taken in by the charade”, which led to them comforting and supporting him. The court heard that Kim had been dead for some time and it was concluded that Thompson did not attempt CPR.
Miss Moore KC said the police were “fooled” by what Thompson had done, which resulted in Kim’s body being removed and the defendant was left to clear up the scene after they had left.
The jury members were shown pictures of the scene, which would not typically be done in court, and they were encouraged by the prosecution to take note of the injuries around her mouth.
Kim was surrounded by pill packets, two bottles of alcohol and two photo frames – one with a picture of Kim and Thompson at their wedding and the other was a montage of photos of Kim’s sister who had committed suicide some 10 years earlier.
The court heard it was believed that this was a “suicide attempt or an unfortunate accident”.
Thompson initially said that the last time he had contact with Kim was at 2.30am when he received a message of a “sexual nature”. The defendant says he then looked in on her at 5.30am on his way downstairs, as there was no door to the room Kim was in as the carpet had just been done.
It is the prosecution’s case that Kim did not send the sexual message and the court heard that at first, Thompson did not mention about seeing Kim or having sex with her after the message was received.
When officers asked Thompson if Kim was drunk, he said she was “merry” and claimed they had consensual sexual intercourse, the court heard.
Miss Moore KC said that Thompson painted the picture that after the intercourse, Kim got the two photographs, drank alcohol, took drugs and “ended it all”. It was at 5.30am that Thompson said he found her face down and dead.
The sudden death protocol showed that no particles of vomit were found in Kim’s airways.
The court heard that after the police saw this as a tragic accident or suicide, Thompson was treated as the “bereaved spouse” and left him to clean up the scene after they had left. It was Kim’s friends and family who raised concerns.
Miss Moore KC said that Kim was finally getting free of Thompson with a new partner, a home to move into and a request for a financial settlement during the divorce proceedings.
The court heard that the suicide of Kim’s sister had a big effect on her and she was of the belief that “one should not take one’s life”, which is why this was “wholly out of character”.
Kim’s loved ones noticed postings on social media sites in the early hours of August 9, which the prosecution believe were not created by Kim. This included a Facebook friend request from Kim to Thompson and changing her status to married.
A post saying “drinking too much !” was also posted to Kim’s Facebook, which raised suspicions among loved ones as they know Kim uses the incorrect ‘to’ in these instances and doesn’t leave a gap between words and punctuation.
Miss Moore KC referred to Thompson’s “tidying up, scene setting and fakery” and said he had wrongly assumed Kim was planning to introduce their son to his new partner.
The prosecution believe he was “stewing” about Kim’s new partner and her request for more money in the divorce proceedings. The court heard that on August 8, Thompson accessed sexualised videos of Kim. He had taken recordings of them on his phone and his reflection can be seen in Kim’s phone.
The prosecution’s case is that he raped and killed her, before trying to cover it up with Facebook and Snapchat entries “painting a picture, a wholly false one”.
The court heard that toxicology found the only drugs in Kim’s system were a therapeutic dose and not consistent with what was found at the scene. There was no alcohol in her system either.
Thompson was arrested on August 12 and interviewed five times. He says that he found her face down, turned her over, and gave CPR and mouth-to-mouth. The defendant says Kim lied on the allegations made against him and he’d had enough of being married to her.
The defendant called her “promiscuous, a hoarder and a liar” and that they had sex “now and then” despite being separated. The court heard he claimed to leave his extra phone recording “for his own protection” and he did not believe it was controlling behaviour.
Thompson also says he never belittled Kim and that the screaming heard by two separate neighbours at different times around the time of the incident was foxes.
The bottles of alcohol from the scene were sent for further examination. Kim’s fingerprints were not found on them but Thompson’s were.
The court heard no anatomical cause of death was apparent, as well as no toxicology cause of death nor no natural cause of death. Kim had abrasions to the face, bruising in the mouth, and what have been concluded as “defensive injuries” to the arms.
The injuries around the mouth are explained by “external airways obstruction”, which is believed to be the “most plausible cause of death”. The court heard Kim’s bruises are consistent with defensive action and that Kim was suffocated, with pressure having caused the injuries to the mouth.
It is the prosecution’s case that Thompson “manually suffocated” Kim and set about trying to pervert the course of justice to cover it up.
Miss Moore KC concluded that the “cover up may be the most powerful evidence against Thompson” as the items that moved, including the alcohol, pills and photo frames, “couldn’t have walked there” and “must have been placed there for a reason”.
The trial continues.
Take a look at the Chronicle & Echo’s ongoing coverage of this trial here…