[A] 19-year-old man has been jailed for life and will serve a minimum of 24 years for the murder of 53-year-old Shaun Skelton in York earlier this year.
Daniel Thomas Reed, of no fixed address, but had previously lived in York, was jailed on 24 July 2017 at Leeds Crown Court after pleading guilty to the murder of Mr Skelton on the night of 5 March 2017.
Reed smashed his way into Mr Skelton’s flat on Holgate Road before attacking him with a hammer and a knife.
After killing Mr Skelton, Reed made his way through the streets of York, calling at the railway station and a taxi office on Queen Street, telling staff he had attacked a man. The staff alerted police officers who traced Reed’s movements to the Scarcroft Road area where he was arrested in the early hours of 6 March.
Detective Chief Inspector Mark Pearson of the Major Investigation Team, said: “My thoughts remain with Mr Skelton’s family today, particularly his mother and stepfather whose lives have been changed forever. They have had to endure the devastation brought on by the needless and senseless death of Shaun. While no sentence can compensate for the loss of a loved one, I hope today’s outcome brings a small measure of comfort to them, knowing that justice has been served and Reed is now facing the consequences of his terrible, unprovoked attack.”
A second man, Scott Fletcher, 18, of Lindsey Gardens, Burmantofts, Leeds, pleaded guilty to assisting an offender (murder) after offering Reed a place to stay to avoid detection and advising him to delete text messages relating to the offer of accommodation. He was given an 18 month jail sentence suspended for two years and ordered to carry out 100 hours of unpaid work.
