Two brothers have been jailed for the murder of Karol Kelly.
The pair were handed a total of 32 years following their unanimous convictions by a jury of the murder of father-of-five Mr Kelly outside a house in the Grafton Street area of Derry five years ago.
Sean Anderson, 24, from Grafton Street, was jailed for 17 years and his older brother Gary Anderson, 25, also from Grafton Street, was jailed for 15 years.
Read more: Karol Kelly murder: Two brothers found guilty
Both were convicted following a 22 day long trial last June of stabbing their victim to death minutes after an earlier violent altercation with Mr Kelly in their family home in the early hours of March 4, 2018.
Mr Kelly, 35, who had earlier attacked two men, one of them Sean Anderson, ran from the house after the assault and was chased by the Anderson brothers. He was forced to the ground where he sustained multiple stab injuries from the two knives the defendants had armed themselves with.
Most of the stab wounds, including the fatal wound which perforated Mr Kelly’s aorta causing his rapid death, were inflicted by Sean Anderson as the victim lay on the street outside the Andersons’ family home. Gary Anderson also stabbed Mr Kelly, again as the victim lay defenceless on the street. Trial Judge Philip Babington said it was extremely difficult to know what occurred at the time of Mr Kelly’s murder.
He said: “There is no doubt that the death of the deceased was a result of actions by both Andersons, in effect a joint enterprise in which the deceased sustained multiple stab wounds, some of which were undoubtedly inflicted when the deceased was lying defenceless on the ground.”
Describing the attack on Mr Kelly as brutal and heartless, Judge Babington said while it was initiated by the deceased assaulting the two Anderson brothers in their home, it was equally true that the attack was in revenge for what had occurred inside the house.
“Whilst any attack is to be deplored, an attack in which knives were used is both cowardly and unacceptable. It was completely out of proportion to anything that had occurred before.
“I am satisfied that this is a higher starting point case on the basis that the offence involved extensive or multiple injuries that were inflicted on the deceased before death, particularly to his torso but also to his head and face”, Judge Babington added.
Speaking after the two brothers were sentenced, Paul Kelly, a brother of the deceased, on behalf of the Kelly family, said what happened on the night of the murder was wrong, brutal and heartless.
He added: “The consequence is a lifetime of broken hearts, in particular for Karol’s five beautiful children whom he adored and they loved and adored him back. These innocent children were robbed overnight of their childhood and of many precious memories made with their daddy. After five long and emotionally draining years our family are ready to close down this horrible chapter in our lives.
“We thank the court for the just and fair sentences today and we also wish to thank all those of tried to save Karol that night. We also want to extend our thanks to the residents of Grafton Street for their participation in a long and difficult trial. Lastly we want to thank the people in our lives who have supported us, checked in with us and helped us stay strong as a family.”
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