A ‘phenomenal’ and ‘kind-hearted’ university lecturer was stabbed to death

A university lecturer has died after she was reportedly stabbed on Wednesday.

Claire Butler taught adult nursing at the University of Plymouth. She was attacked on West Hoe Road in Plymouth at around 9pm on Wednesday 22nd January. Paramedics rushed to the scene and took her to Derriford Hospital, where she was pronounced dead.

Armed police combed the area for suspects. A forensics team studied the street until Thursday morning. One eyewitness told the MailOnline, “It feels like every police officer on duty tonight in Plymouth is here.”

On Thursday, the police arrested a 53-year-old man called Paul Antony Butler on suspicion of murder. Paul and Claire were previously married, according to Plymouth Live. The police found him in the Liskeard area of Cornwall – about 20 miles from Plymouth. Paul is now in police custody.

One of Claire Butler’s neighbours told MailOnline, “Police raided the house around 10pm last night – they just told us to stay indoors. She’d been away recently on business and when she came back she decided she didn’t want to live here while she was down the road so she got an apartment in West Hoe. She’d only just moved her stuff in last week. She has a son and a daughter.”

The University of Plymouth
(Image by N Chadwick via Creative Commons)

Claire Butler worked at the University of Plymouth for nine years, and became the Associate Head of School for Internationalisation. She used to work as a research nurse at the University of Leicester.

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Many university students have written tributes to Claire Butler on social media. One woman wrote, “Claire was my personal tutor in university and genuinely helped me through some truly difficult times. Always believed in me, even when I didn’t believe in myself. She was so proud when I finally graduated, and I told her that day that I could have never done it without her and I genuinely meant that.