Pair jailed for street murder
A man and a teenager were jailed for life yesterday for murdering a father-of-five in a savage street attack as he visited his local shops. Carl Keatley, 21, was jailed for a minimum of 13 years and Jordan Carroll, 16, for at least 11 years for the murder of Michael Eccles in January.
The killers, both from Lichfield, Staffordshire, were found guilty at Birmingham Crown Court in August after Mr Eccles, 43, died in hospital. The factory worker was left with a burst eye socket, 10 broken ribs and broken bones in his neck following the attack just yards from his front door, in the Dimbles area of Lichfield, on 25 January.
He died from his injuries the next day. Judge Robert Juckes QC also jailed Carroll's father, Edward, for three years for perverting justice by attempting to cover up the crime. The trial heard that Carroll's mother, Sandra Carroll, turned the teenager in to the authorities after her estranged husband tried to destroy forensic evidence by washing their son's clothes. Edward Carroll, 55, was convicted in August after his wife gave evidence against him and their son. Jordan Carroll and Keatley attacked Mr Eccles after spending much of the day drinking vodka in a park.
The earlier court hearing was told they followed him from a parade of shops before kicking, punching and stamping on their victim, leaving him lying on the pavement with horrific injuries. Outside court, Mr Eccles's family criticised the "feeble" sentences and accused the Government of failing to act against "the feral youths that are terrorising our communities".