78 year old arrested for murder

I hope this poor man will be freed, he must have been terrified, and his reaction was quite normal under the dreadful circumstances, it is awful somebody died, but what were these thugs doing in somebody elses house anyway, that was not legal entry. Anyone of us would defend out home and in particular someone who couldnt defend for themselves, like this mans wife.
I wish this man peace in the future, we are all behind him.

His accomplice, who may well be another family member, escaped. There would be little purpose in trying to protect his identity. It's a shame that he is plastered all over the newspapers though. The poor man must be distraught with shock and worry.

Quote from the Evening Standard.
www.standard.co.uk/news/crime/henry-vincent-victim-of-armed-burglar-fatally-stabbed-by-pensioner-declares-good-riddance-a3807436.html?S2ref=1235385

It sounds like targeting elderly people is a family speciality.
Scum.

Annemac I think you are right they shouldn’t have identified the old gent he might well be targeted

I still have read nothing about a knife in any report so pretty sure the burglar was pierced by his own weapon probably totally by accident

The deceased burglar’s family are not happy it seems.
www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2018/04/05/burglar-killed-pensioners-home-wanted-previous-robbery/?li_source=LI&li_medium=li-recommendation-widget

Just in case someone still wants a link www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-london-43648896

I read that the man ran quite a distance before he collapsed, and then his accomplice tried to drag him into a van, then abandoned him and drove off. I don't suppose that all of that activity would help the injured man, and maybe it would contribute to his death. He went into the householders property armed with a screwdriver, threatened the elderly man, and his wife was distraught. People have the right to defend themselves in their own home. The man would not have died if he hadn't been where he should not have been.

I think they should have protected the pensioner's identity. The man who died comes from a well know criminal family I'd be frightened or and repercussions for the poor man and his wife.

I think there'll be an outcry if he is charged.

I am thinking of the nasty piece of work who broke into my mums house late one night, completely ransacked it, took her life savings and left her in complete fear. She was blind and alone. Within weeks her dementia had deteriorated to such a point she was hospitalised and was never able to return home.

I seem to remember a case where a burgler sued a home owner because he slipped on their kitchen floor. The law is crazy sometimes.

It seems to becoming a common stance that perpetrators are the ones who 'suffer' and those who try to protect their families [in this case in the middle of the night] are the 'bad' guys.
I'm working to improve safe parking for delivery staff. They are fined if they park in the 'wrong' place but there are very few alternatives available - and this situation is well known in the industry.
It's those who are doing their best under unsatisfactory - or in this older man's frightening - circumstances who often land in the mire it seems.

He was released on bail yesterday, he has to report back to police station in a months time to which they will decide if there is grounds to charge him. Most are suggesting they will not charge him under the new laws. There has been a crowd funding page set up via Facebook to help him with his legal costs should he need it. Sad that he was even kept in a cell for 24 hrs like most say he deserves a medal not a criminal record.

My sympathy is with the householder and his wife, not the criminal. That criminal had no right to be breaking into the householders home, instilling fear and being violent. The criminal was where he shouldn't have been. He intended wrongdoing.
of course it had to be investigated, but I sincerely hope that the householders will get all the support they are going to need. Goodness knows what damage has been done to their mental well being as a result of this terrible event.
Those burglars were the wrongdoers in this case not the householder.

Aggressive scumbag dead, potential victim alive. Good news story as far as I’m concerned.

It's terrible and I often wonder why people who commit serious violent crimes are given bail at all, though in this case it seems the sensible thing to do.
Surely we all have the right to defend ourselves, our loved ones and our property?
I've no sympathy whatsoever for the burglar. If you go about committing crimes you deserve whatever comes your way and if that's a stab/shotgun wound then hard cheese.

The police had no option but to arrest him but they did not have to keep him in custody for 2 days. He is now on bail. I hope the police are properly protecting him and his wife because the family are very worrying. They forced an 80 year old woman to sign over her house and he and his father have been jailed twice.
I don't believe in the death penalty but some people's death is not a loss to the world. Stopping crime families like this is so difficult. You have to sympathise with people born into them because they have little chance of seeing the world as honest people see it.

I wonder if he was taken into custody for his own safety if this horrible gang are local and out for revenge.

Sorry, but nobody 'deserves' to be killed for breaking into a house. Thank goodness we've seen the back of public executions. And who is to say that the screwdriver was wielded by the burglar? If he was a career criminal I would have thought he'd arm himself with something more effective than that. Yes, burglary and violent robbery is a terrible thing and we have the right to defend ourselves 'with reasonable force'. Until all the facts are known I'm not inclined to view the householder as a 'hero' and he should certainly be subjected to the due process of law.

One less villain for the police to have to deal with.

Jalima, I'm smiling bemusedly at your 'handy rope' in the kitchen. Don't think I have such stuff in my home or garden. I'm assuming it's tongue in cheek and again that made me smile which is somewhat of a relief in the midst of the awful topic of this thread. Sad stuff from all angles where nobody has 'won'

And those of you who live in Scotland may want to consult salvas.co.uk to see what Scots law has to say on the subject of self-defence and reasonable force.

One notable difference is that if you are defending yourself, you must have first tried to retreat from the threatening situation.

You are allowed to use ‘reasonable force’ in your own defence, but what is ‘reasonable’ depends on the circumstances and is a moveable feast

Am with OldMeg on this one ....100% ... having spent my working life with this low life, I know how “funny” it is to so many of them, no remorse, no respect and no care for anyone else but themselves. When they are sent to prison they don’t care, just interested in who else is inside so they can have a good old reunion.