A pair of former abattoir workers convicted of murdering and butchering two men have both been jailed for life. Iacob-Bebe Chers and Ionut-Valentin Boboc tricked their way into the Easton home of former workmate Denzil McKenzie, who was with visitor Fahad Hossain Pramanik.
They brutally stabbed both men and arranged their bodies in a scene of horror in Mr McKenzie's sitting room, Bristol Crown Court heard. Mr McKenzie had been stabbed 23 times, Mr Pramanik three times, and jurors heard the extent of their injuries and how their bodies had been left on "macabre display".
Boboc, 22, of Abingdon Road in Hillfields, pleaded guilty to murdering Mr McKenzie but denied murdering Mr Pramanik in September last year. Chers, 46, of Whitefield, Hillfields denied both murder charges. A jury at Bristol Crown Court convicted them both of the murder charges they denied and they were sentenced today (December 21, 2022).
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The judge Mrs Justice Cutts told the killers: "On that night you took the lives of these two men in a particularly cruel and savage way." She jailed both men for life - Boboc for a minimum of 37-and-a-half years and Chers for a minimum of 39 years.
During trial the jury was told that in September last year the defendants visited the house of Mr McKenzie in Wood Street, Easton, where McKenzie and Mr Pramanik were. Kevin Dent KC, prosecuting, said at around 10pm a neighbour heard shouting, and around 11pm the two defendants left with McKenzie's property including audio equipment and jewellery.
After the killings efforts had been made to clean the scene, and black car paint had been sprayed on the bodies and around the house, the court heard. Both the accused got rid of clothes they were wearing and were arrested the next day, Mr Dent said.
Speaking during the sentencing hearing, the judge said the two defendants had been living and working in Bristol for some time and were good friends. She said up until the summer of 2021 they worked at Tulip abattoir where they met "quiet and popular" Mr McKenzie.
The judge said Boboc squandered his wages on slot machines, and got money off of Mr McKenzie in return for sexual favours. On September 11 last year, after Boboc lost money on gambling, Boboc pressed Mr McKenzie for a visit as he had a "present he would like", the court heard.
Boboc and Chers then tricked their way into his home and attacked and killed two men in the most brutal way. Despite their defence barristers questioning the level of pre-meditation, the judge was satisfied there was an element of planning, with Chers carrying gloves as her entered Mr McKenzie's home.
The judge said at least three knives were used in the "ferocious attack", and the inference was that knives were taken to the scene. She said the killers could have had no plan to kill Mr Pramanik, but he became an innocent victim.
Injuries suffered by each man speak of the brutality of the attack, the judge said. Evidence showed Mr McKenzie was stabbed upstairs and downstairs - with two knives broken during the attack. The judge rejected Chers' account that he acted in self-defence when Mr Pramanik attacked him.
A pathologist could not rule out some of the men's injuries were caused by torture - but neither she nor the judge could be sure of that. The pair were arrested after Boboc confessed to his girlfriend and aunt he had killed a man, and the defendant directed police to the crime scene.
The judge commended the victims' families for their dignity during the court case. In an impact statement one of Mr McKenzie's daughters, 17, said he was a happy, peaceful family man.
She said it felt like her worst nightmare to lose him and she will always have a hole in her heart without him. Another of his daughters, aged 23, said her dad always had a smile, was respectful and had never once harmed anyone.
She said the brutal murder left her entire family "devastated and broken". She said since the murder her perception of people had changed.
A joint statement from Mr McKenzie's ex-wife, sister-in-law and nephew said the house in Wood Street had been their safe haven, and the killers didn't just take away Mr McKenzie - fondly known as Chef - they took away a family's memories. They said Chef was calm, caring. loving and dependable and the family asked the killers why they would leave six children without a dad?
The statement said the family had been living through a "continual nightmare" and life felt pointless. They said: "You have destroyed our lives by taking Chef away from us, and in such a sick and disgusting way."
The judge also commended investigating police officers. Both defendants showed no emotion as they were taken down.
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