Michael Thompson trial: 18-year-old bereaved daughter describes mother as ‘best friend’ and ‘my person’
The 18-year-old bereaved daughter of Kimberley Thompson described her mother as her “best friend” and “my person” during a police interview following her passing, the court heard.
Fifty-five-year-old Michael Thompson, of Pinewood Road, pleaded not guilty to the rape and murder of 43-year-old Kimberley Thompson – who was found dead at a home in Pinewood Road 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 on Thursday, May 21 ahead of the prosecution opening on Tuesday, May 26.
The court heard the evidence of their 18-year-old daughter on Thursday, May 28, which included two video recordings of police interviews and an additional statement.
It began with the first police interview on August 15, 2025. When asked about her home life when she was younger, she said it was “good” as they were together a lot, had dinner together and went on holidays.
The court heard that she recalled arguments about food shopping and it was her father, Thompson, who started the arguments. These disagreements made her feel “upset I guess” and Athena knew her mum was not happy “for a few years”.
The court heard that the daughter “could tell” her mother was upset because she would show it, as well as stay at work late or go to the gym.
When asked about the relationship with her mum, she described Kim as her “best friend” and “my person”. She had “always been close” to her as Kim used to coach her in basketball. She confirmed she was close with her dad but it was different as he was “more of a parent figure” and “sort of a friend”.
The teenager said she “knew for a long time” about her parents’ separation as Kim slept in her own room, they would do their own stuff privately, and she saw them separately when they came to watch her play basketball.
She confirmed this had been ongoing for around three years, as her dad had “sent the divorce papers” and her mum had bought a home that she was planning to move to. The 18-year-old says they had been “distant” the last three years as they “both didn’t want to be with each other anymore”.
She said she spoke to Kim on the evening of Friday, August 8 at 11.23pm for 28 minutes and said she seemed “happy” and “normal”.
To conclude the first police interview, she said she knew that sometimes her dad would go through her mum’s phone and that she was present when they found another phone recording in the car. The court heard the daughter was “angry” about this.
Kim told her daughter that her dad kept going through her phone and the 18-year-old knew this because he said things only Kim knew.
‘I know the message she sent on Snapchat wasn’t her’
In her second police interview on November 25, 2025, the 18-year-old confirmed she and her mum did not message each other after the 28-minute call on the evening of August 8, 2025.
The next message that she received was a Snapchat from Kim saying she had drunk too much, which the 18-year-old says made her “a bit confused” and it was a “weird message to send”.
She says that when she looked back at the message, she thinks she knew that her mum did not send it because of the space between the last word and the exclamation mark.
The court heard the teenager say her mother did not drink at home for no reason, she did not believe she had been drinking when they spoke on the phone on August 8, and that she was getting ready to go to bed.
The 18-year-old spoke of how arguments started when Kim bought too much stuff shopping and that her father would call Kim a “narcissist”. Kim would “be upset, go to her room and cry” and try to stay away from Thompson as much as possible.
The trial continues.
Take a look at the Chronicle & Echo’s ongoing coverage of this trial here…