NATASHA Elderfield has this afternoon been sentenced to nine years in prison for killing her boyfriend Robert "Raggy Smith" Dobinson.

Judge Patrick Eccles sentenced Elderfield, 41 after a jury cleared her of murder but found her guilty of manslaughter during a trial in April.

Mr Dobinson died after being found with a stab wound to the heart on board Elderfield's boat that was moored on the Thames in Abingdon on October 19 last year.

Judge Eccles said the case was "tragic".

Det Chief Insp Kev Brown said: “This was a difficult prosecution given the circumstances, but I am pleased that a jury found Elderfield guilty of manslaughter and a conviction was achieved.

“As with any case where a person has lost their life, no sentence ever feels adequate for what the family and friends of the victim are going through.

“This case sadly demonstrates the extreme outcomes that can emanate from excessive drinking and domestic violence. Elderfield may not have intended to kill Robert, but due to her violent and drunken actions, a family is left without their son and brother and his daughter is without her father.

“No sentence can ever bring Robert back, but I hope that the knowledge Elderfield will serve significant time behind bars will help his family as they start to move forward with their lives."