Sunday 17 January 2010

Brutal Brothers Batter Grandad To Death


Two violent brothers who mercilessly beat their frail 76 year-old grandfather to death – using fists, feet, bottles and bits of furniture – have been caged for life.

Tragic pensioner Paul Peters, of Kennard House, Francis Chichester Way, Battersea, died at home on May 2, last year from multiple injuries, including 33 fractures to his ribs.

Known affectionately to locals as “granddad” Mr. Peters had reported the brothers’ violence to social services who changed the locks on his front door in a bid to keep the duo out.

Jobless Wayne Edwards, 34, of Kennard House and jobless Anton Sanderson, 25, of Latymer Way, Holloway, were convicted at the Old Bailey’s famous Court Number One of murder and ordered to serve a minimum of 20 years.

Bizarrely, Edwards (pic. top) and Sanderson (pic. below) visited a nearby Indian takeaway restaurant on the night of the murder and in a fit of violence caused £17,000 worth of damage to the Noor Tandoori.

When police quizzed Edwards he claimed to have been sleeping off a drinking session at the time of the murder, but CCTV evidence proved him wrong plus evidence given by neighbours who saw and heard him.

The brothers were known to police and social services as troublemakers and their grandfather had reported a history of a violent relationship to the authorities.

At one stage social services assisted Peters in changing his locks to keep his grandsons out of the flat, after he had stated he did not want them living with him, claiming, “this could escalate and God knows what could happen to me.”

Sadly, Mr. Peters did let his grandsons have access to his flat again, even though Edwards was once arrested on suspicion of assault and later released.

The victim gave him a new set of keys telling his social worker that he ‘could not live alone.’

Neighbours at Kennard House heard smashing glass and fighting from Mr. Peters’s flat on the night of the fatal attack

By 10 pm the noise had stopped and Edwards and Johnson were seen at various stages in the evening on CCTV leaving the property, having changed their clothes to hide the fact they had just beaten Mr. Peters to death.

CCTV showed Edwards entering the crime scene in an attempt to clear up the blood and neighbours were woken by the sound of footsteps and furniture being dragged around as they tried to clear up the evidence of the brutal attack, disposing of the weapons, bedding and tissues down the communal rubbish chute.

The victim’s son found the body of his father in the kitchen, half naked and covered in bruises.

Detective Inspector Gary Arthur, of the Homicide and Serious Crime Command, said:

“The evidence against these brothers was overwhelming.

“Through forensics and CCTV we have successfully been able to bring these violent brothers to justice.”

“It is far from our understanding how anyone could brutally beat a frail old man to death. It is tragic that he had to die in such a way.”

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