One punched a ‘hero’ dad outside a nightclub, while another carried out a ‘frenzied’ hammer attack after a row over a PlayStation
L-R: Kejuan Malone, Rhys Jones and Gary O’Neill
These thugs all ripped families apart when they launched savage and fatal attacks.
One punched a ‘hero’ dad outside a nightclub, causing him to fall and hit his head on the pavement.
Another carried out a ‘frenzied’ hammer attack after a row with his friend over a PlayStation.
READ MORE: Grieving mum accuses police of ‘killing’ her son, 21, who took his own life after being arrested
Two youths were also convicted of killing an 80-year-old dog walker in a park just yards from his Midlands home.
You can read about each individual crime in the round-up below.
Kejuan Malone
Kejuan Malone(Image: WMP)
This man punched a ‘hero’ dad outside a Walsall nightclub, causing him to fall and hit his head on the pavement.
Kevin Taylor, 51, was found injured and unconscious outside Decode Lounge in Lichfield Street on December 7 last year.
He’d been hit multiple times by Kejuan Malone, 33, following a verbal exchange outside the club shortly before 5am.
Malone, of Osprey Close, Hall Green, was identified from CCTV footage and arrested two days after the attack.
The 33-year-old appeared at Wolverhampton Crown Court on Monday, April 14, where he pleaded guilty to manslaughter. He’s due to be sentenced on May 12.
Mr Taylor’s children previously paid tribute to their “hero” dad and said: “Dad, you were our hero, a guiding light who taught us love, kindness, and resilience.
“Your generosity and unwavering support touched so many lives, and your memory will forever live in our hearts.
“We love you deeply and will honour your legacy always.”
Boy, 15, and 13-year-old girl
Two teens were convicted of killing an 80-year-old dog walker in a shocking park attack.
Bhim Kohli was killed just yards from his Midlands home on September 1 last year.
The pensioner was racially abused by his young attackers, who filmed the beating, which saw him slapped in the face with a shoe.
Mr Kohl suffered a broken neck and rib fractures and died in hospital the next evening.
Jurors at Leicester Crown Court deliberated for six hours and 46 minutes before unanimously convicting the two youths – who cannot be named due to their age – of manslaughter on April 8. They will be sentenced next month.
Following the verdict, Detective Chief Inspector Mark Sinski, of Leicestershire Police, said Mr Kohli was a ‘much-loved grandfather’.
He said: “Mr Kohli was a true family man. He was the centre of his family – a very beloved husband.
“His family have been absolutely devastated by his loss. He was in the last stage of his life, but very fit and healthy and had a long life ahead of him still.”
Gary O’Neill
Gary O’Neill , who has been jailed for killing his best friend Kenneth Ford in Tyseley(Image: West Midlands Police)
A blazing row over a PlayStation led to Gary O’Neill carrying out a ‘frenzied’ hammer attack that led to the death of his friend.
Kenneth Ford suffered 112 injuries after an argument broke out at the bedsit in Colebrook Road, Tyseley in 2022.
O’Neill and Kenneth, 30, had just started living together, but a late-night argument led to the fatal attack.
The killer fled by coach from Birmingham to Carlisle, with police checking his banking information and mobile cell site data.
He then made his way towards Glasgow before police in Scotland detained him after he had harassed passengers for a phone charger on board a bus.
A forensic psychologist found O’Neill had suffered damage to his brain years earlier, which may have contributed to his erratic behaviour at the time of the killing.
The two-week murder trial at Birmingham Crown Court was presented with all the forensic evidence along with the defendant’s psychological assessments.
After a day of deliberation, the jury came back with their verdict of not guilty of murder, but guilty of manslaughter by way of diminished responsibility.
O’Neill was sentenced to 15 years in jail in March last year and will be on licence for life.
Det Insp Michelle Thurgood from West Midlands Police said: “The jury verdict of guilty to manslaughter was obviously very hard for Kenneth’s family.
“They will always believe that the sentence is not equivalent to the fact that their son has lost his life.”
Rhys Jones
Rhys Jones(Image: Lancashire Constabulary)
This killer launched a deadly and ‘unprovoked’ attack on a stranger outside a nightclub while on holiday in Blackpool.
Rhys Jones from Cannock ‘squared up’ to George Fenlon after his ‘gentle’ victim tried to intervene in an altercation.
He threw a number of vicious punches – one so horrific it proved fatal.
Barman Mr Fenlon suffered serious head injuries and was rushed to hospital.
Sadly, he never regained consciousness and died just over three months later.
His heartbroken partner had given birth to their daughter just a fortnight before his tragic death on November 22.
She said: “My world fell apart, my heart smashed into a million pieces, and my daughter’s life changed before it had really begun.”
Jones was jailed for 10 years and two months at Preston Crown Court on July 26 last year.