Brandon Byrne was jailed for life for hunting down and killing James Cook
James and his daughters(Image: Adele Cook)
A revenge killer who hunted down and stabbed a dad-of-three to death has been jailed for life, one year and a day since he carried out the murder.
Judge Steven Coupland told 23-year-old Brandon Byrne what he did to James Cook and his family has left them devastated at the loss of a “cheeky charmer” and loving father, husband, son and brother.
In a victim impact statement, one of Mr Cook’s daughters said her father’s killer was “the monster who stole my dad like he was nothing”.
And another daughter said she now feels “a type of hurt that cuts through you like a knife that no one should go through”.
Telling the father-of-two defendant it would be 23 years before he would be eligible to apply for parole, Judge Coupland said: “In an incident that lasted less than two minutes you murdered James Cook.
“He was a hard worker, someone who showed love and a desire to help others and someone who was described as cheeky and a charmer.
“His loss will be deeply felt by his family and friends.
“This case is a tragic example of what can happen when anyone carries a knife in public.
“What you did shows you were acting out of revenge.
“Rather than stay and help Mr Cook you walked off and left him.
“I am satisfied there was an intention to kill.”
Adele Cook described her husband as a ‘lovable rogue'(Image: Adele Cook)
A near three-week trial at Nottingham Crown Court heard how Byrne armed himself with a knife and went looking for 40-year-old Mr Cook, stabbing him twice and kicking him to death in Castle Gate, Newark on April 30, last year.
The pair had earlier had a fist fight in a pub, during which Byrne suffered an injury to his face.
Incensed by this, the defendant was seen on CCTV to produce a knife and go searching for Mr Cook, who had left via the front of the pub they had been in.
The pair’s paths crossed shortly afterward, and the defendant chased the victim along Stodman Street and onto Castle Gate, where he stabbed him and kicked him to the head, before stabbing him again while he lay injured on the ground.
Despite the best efforts of paramedics, the victim was pronounced dead shortly after midnight.
Shortly after 4am on May 1, the murderer – who was 22 at the time – had been identified, tracked down and detained at his home address by police.
Body-worn video then captured the killer, formerly of Winston Court, Newark, asking an officer “did he die?”, when confronted with what he had done.
Brandon Byrne will be sentenced this week(Image: Nottinghamshire Police)
The defendant denied murder, telling the trial he acted in self-defence, but after hearing all of the evidence, a jury convicted him of the charge.
In her victim impact statement Evelyn Pepper, Mr Cook’s mother, said: “He loved life and adored his three daughters who were his world.
“He was just 40 years old when his life was cruelly ended in this way and I cannot begin to tell you about the devastating impact this has had on his family.
“I wake up every morning thinking his death was a bad dream that will end.”
In his statement, Peter Cook, the victim’s father who lives in Queensland, Australia, said: “Despite the distance between us we were extremely close and we were always there for each other.
“I am not the man I once was, I am broken.”
Adele Cook and her husband, James Cook, who was fatally stabbed in Newark in April(Image: Adele Cook)
Nicola Pepper, James’ sister, said: “We talk about heroes and James was mine, he was not just my brother he was my best friend,
“I feel like when James died, so did I.
“I still cry every day, James was the heart and soul of our family and now all we have are memories.”
Neil Pepper, his step-father, said: “We are broken that he was taken from us so cruelly and my heart breaks that his daughters will not know his pride as he walked them down the aisle.
“James’ death has left the whole family devastated and heartbroken.”
James and Adele shared three teenage daughters(Image: Adele Cook)
Lily Cook, one of Mr Cook’s daughters, in her statement said: “I feel a loss of love and a loss of life.
“There is a type of hurt that cuts through you like a knife, it is a type of hurt that no one should go through.”
The victim’s middle daughter, Olivia Cook, said: “I had not long turned 16 when my dad was taken from me.
“Why would someone do this to my dad? My hero? No more hugs, no more ‘I love yous,’ no more memories, all gone within the blink of an eye.
“You, Brandon, are the monster in my life, you should not just be done for murder you should be done for theft because you have taken him from my life.
“You are the monster who stole my dad like he was nothing.”
Lisa Wilding KC, defending, said her client had been diagnosed in childhood with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and had been expelled from school.
She said: “He had at the time stopped taking his ADHD medication.
“He had limited ability to process the consequences of his actions and we invite the court to conclude that he was not intending to, or looking to, harm any person,
“He was a regular user of cannabis; he’d had two pints and he did not consider himself as drunk.
“We submit there was no intention to kill.
“He is sorry for what he did, he never wanted anything like this to happen and he knows he has to face the consequences.”