A TEENAGER who stabbed to father-of-three death near his home in what was described as a “horrific” attack has been jailed for life.
Tieran Carmody, 19, of Berecroft, Harlow, inflicted a single, fatal stab wound on 35-year-old Max Richardson on August 21 last year.
Mr Richardson had confronted the teenager for loitering around properties near his home and making children in the area feel uncomfortable.
Mr Richardson was on the floor with his hands held up in a surrendering motion when Carmody stabbed him through the stomach before fleeing the scene on his bicycle.
Officers and paramedics arrived and provided care to the father, but he was pronounced dead while en-route to hospital.
The killer was later captured on CCTV at a shop in Pitsea and leaving a pub in Benfleet alongside 19-year-old Harrison Barnett in the days following the murder.
A police investigation revealed Barnett had provided shelter to Carmody, allowing him to use his phone to speak with friends and family, and to conduct internet searches.
On Barnett’s phone, police found searches for news articles covering the stabbing as well as a search querying how a person can leave the country without a passport.
He denied a charge of perverting the course of justice but stood trial alongside Carmody and was convicted.
At Monday’s sentencing hearing, held at Southwark Crown Court, Barnett was jailed for a year and six months.
This included a three-month prison term for breaching a suspended prison sentence he was already serving.
Carmony was jailed for life for Mr Richardson’s murder and will serve a minimum of 26 years before he can be considered for parole.
Det Chief Insp Ashley Howard, of Essex Police’s serious crime directorate, said: “Max’s family have sat through a difficult trial with dignity and restraint, now speaking of the impact of this horrific crime.
“Their lives have been torn apart. Their loss cannot be put into words.
“It is my hope that the knowledge Carmody, and his accomplice Harrison Barnett, have been brought to justice and put behind bars, will help them move forward as best they can.
“Tieran Carmody murdered a stranger, for no other reason than the fact that stranger had dared to stand up to him.
“From the outset of this investigation, my team has worked hard to establish the facts, to gather the evidence and to ensure a concrete case was put before the jury.
“There is never a good reason to carry a knife in public, particularly a knife of this horrifying nature, and no world in which it can be justified.”
"Our lives will never be the same again"
Victim impact statements were read to the court on behalf of Max’s partner Sarah and his mum Carol.
Carol said: “I would like to thank the police, the prosecutors, and the jurors for all of their hard work in relation to this case.
“I also would like to thank the judge, who recognised that this was a brutal murder.
“Having to sit in court and see what we have seen and hear what we have heard is replaying and haunting me on a daily basis.
“Having to say goodbye to someone you love, my son, breaks my heart into small pieces.
“We all miss you and love you so much, rest in peace with Nan now Max.”
Sarah told the court she also drafted her statement on behalf of their three children, aged 13, six and two.
She said: “No one will ever understand the impact of witnessing your partner of 14 years and the father of your three children, being murdered right in front of you and that feeling of instantly losing it all.
“Max was not only a partner and a father, but he was also a son and a brother and again no-one can ever know how that feels to lose a son or a brother in these tragic circumstances.
“Mine and my children’s lives have been torn apart and our lives will never be the same again after losing Max.
“The heartache and pain this has caused us cannot even be put into words. You have taken someone from us that can never be replaced, ever.
“Tieran Carmody, you have significantly affected not only my life but my children’s lives too.
“You have put us through so much trauma and heartache, you have destroyed our lives forever and we now somehow have to carry on with our lives without Max.
“You have created an empty space in our lives, and I hope that you now feel the pain that we are all feeling and realise just how much you have damaged our lives for good especially the lives of our three innocent children.
“I am still very much in denial of this catastrophic crime you have committed.
“The shock and the numbness you have caused us, the fear and the anxiety of going about our daily routines is relentless.
“No-one will ever truly understand the pain and suffering me and my children are feeling right now. Our lives will never be the same again.
“You have not only taken Max from us but you have destroyed us and our future.”
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