Jail for drunken thug who beat man to death
A drunken thug who beat to death a former swimming champion in a "severe" and "sustained attack" at his Black Country bedsit has been jailed for six years.
A drunken thug who beat to death a former swimming champion in a "severe" and "sustained attack" at his Black Country bedsit has been jailed for six years.
Paul Timmins, aged 28, downed 10 pints or cans of lager before attacking 31-year-old Lee Chipchase at a house in Lodge Road, West Bromwich, where both had flats.
The attack happened after Timmins came back from a drinking session at the Prince Albert pub on the night of November 13 and 14 last year. Lee was attacked as he lay in bed.
He was later found to have suffered 18 rib fractures, a broken breastbone, lacerations to the intestine and liver, a serious brain injury and a broken bone in the neck and experts said he had been hit at least 30 times.
Timmins was found guilty of manslaughter, but not guilty of murder at Wolverhampton Crown Court last month and was yesterday jailed at Birmingham Crown Court.
He also received an additional six month sentence for the assault occasioning actual bodily harm of Sean Fletcher, who he attacked at the same time. The sentence was ordered to run consecutively.
The court heard yesterday he already had a string of previous convictions, and was jailed for nine months in April 2005 for assault occasioning actual bodily harm after attacking a man in West Bromwich High Street.
Lee Chipchase had a bright future as a schoolboy, joining Walsall Swimming Club where he became Staffordshire breast stroke junior champion and broke age group records set by double Olympic medallist and world champion Nick Gillingham.
However, his life started to fall apart after turning his back on the sport at the age of 14 and going on to develop a taste for cheap, strong cider. Lee had not worked for five years as drink took over his life.
The attack happened after Timmins spent a night drin-king at the Prince Albert pub. He had drunk 10 pints or cans of lager before attac-king Lee and Sean Fletcher, aged 36, who was drinking with him at the time.
Sentencing Timmins yesterday, Judge Philip Parker QC, said: "You carried out a severe, sustained attack. It was an utterly gratuitous attack, there was not a hint of provocation."
