78 year old arrested for murder

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.

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

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 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.

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

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

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

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

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

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.

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.

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.
Yes Kim, it was tongue in cheek in response to another post

I heard an interview with a relative of the burglar saying what a nice person he was and totally blaming the elderly man. Can’t she see that if he hadn’t been burgling the house and terrifying people it wouldn’t have happened.

Probably not Ellie. Some people just don’t get it!

Acanthus have you ever been burgled in the middle of the night. We have, adranalin kicks in and survival mode takes over. Luckily for us the burglar had escaped the property.

Yes, I saw the relative interview last night, these people live on another planet. Should have been ashamed to be interviewed on TV no shame these days.

According to the papers the burglar was a serial offender, almost all his crimes involved conning elderly people out of money. He and several uncles and his father were cowboy builders and cheated one man out of £72,000 to replace one tile.

Altogether an unpleasant piece of work. I will not say he deserved it, what he deserved was a long spell in prison, but if you go out to break into someone's house, especially armed with a screwdriver, which can be just as dangerous as a knife, while not attracting the long sentences that knife crime entails, and I bet he did that deliberately, then you must take what comes, and in this case someone protected themselves from being stabbed by his screwdriver, by stabbing him with a knife.

As for the relative, as coming from a family of cheating conmen and thieves. If they, as a family, had brought the deceased up to be decent and honest and earn an honest living then he wouldn't have been in someone's house in the middle of the night threatening violence.

In my opinion, if every criminal met a well deserved sticky end the country would be a far better place as our legal system and police seem rubbish nowadays in dispensing adequate and fair justice for the victim. It would save the country a fortune in prison and court costs too.

Just heard that no further action is to be taken against the elderly gentleman who defended himself.

Bluebell - it said on News (Radio 4) yesterday that the householder had used a knife, and that they were in the kitchen when the burglar was stabbed - I assume that he just snatched up a knife to defend himself.

Jaycee 5 - if the dead burglar comes from a criminal family, I guess the elderly couple will have to move. If the family know where they live, there will always be the threat that they could seek revenge. What an upheaval for the poor couple at their age! Such a shame.

Just heard on BBC that the police have said no charges will be brought against this gentleman. Some good sense at last!

I’ve just read that the police are taking no further action on the elderly man.

That is good news indeed.

No charges will be brought but the poor mans home has now been boarded up due to fears he will be targeted

What quizqueen said