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Liverpool Echo
Liverpool Echo
National
Philip Dewey & Dan Haygarth & Jason Evans & Abigail Nicholson

Killers swig from cans and hug near site of deadly attack

CCTV footage shows convicted murderer Jason Edwards drinking with his fellow killers nine days after beating an innocent doctor to death.

Jason Edwards, from Liverpool, Lee Strickland and Dionne Timms-Williams were yesterday found guilty of murdering Dr Gary Jenkins in a Cardiff park on July 10, 2021.

The 54-year-old was set upon on July 10 and pleaded for his life during a brutal 15 minute attack, but he was left for dead covered in blood.

READ MORE: Killers laugh in court after being found guilty of dad's brutal murder

Dr Jenkins died in hospital on August 5.

According to our sister site Wales Online, which covered the trial live, Edwards, who is from Liverpool, and Strickland, from Cardiff, were taken down to the cells after a judge saw them laughing just after the verdict was returned.

The jury took only four hours to reach a guilty verdict on all three defendants.

CCTV footage recorded at 11.15pm on July 19, 2021 - nine days after the deadly attack took place - shows Edwards and Strickland sitting on a bench in Queen Street, Cardiff when Timms-Williams approaches them.

Edwards hands a can to Timms-Williams before Strickland stands up to hug her.

The two share an extended embrace while Edwards remains seated and keeps drinking.

The bench captured in the footage is located on a busy Cardiff shopping street, just a short walk from the city park where the gang had attacked Dr Jenkins days earlier.

Jury heard that Dr Jenkins pleaded to his attackers to be left alone

The jury heard audio of the attack, carried out by Edwards, 25, Strickland, 36, and Timms-Williams, 17, in which Dr Jenkins pleaded for help and for his attackers to “leave me alone” but his cries were left unheeded.

After 15 minutes of being savagely beaten by the group, he was left for dead.

He was taken to hospital but died on August 5.

Gary Jenkins, 54, who died following an attack in Bute Park, Cardiff. Image: South Wales Police/PA Wire (PA)

Edwards, Strickland and Timms-Williams were arrested and later pleaded guilty to manslaughter, robbery and assaulting a man who tried to intervene.

The trial heard Dr Jenkins had gone to Bute Park in order to have sexual encounters with other men but he was targeted by the group because of his sexuality and subjected to an unmerciful and sustained attack.

During the murder, which was caught on CCTV from the Summerhouse Cafe, Dr Jenkins can be heard shouting: “Argh… I haven’t got any money… Argh… Please help me…. What are you doing?”

He also shouts: “Stop it, stop it (Repeated)... Argh that was…. Argh get off me, leave me alone.”

During the assault, Edwards could be heard shouting: “Stamp his head, stamp his head now, stamp his head bro” and the doctor was subjected to homophobic abuse.

Jason Edwards arriving at Merthyr Crown Court (WALES NEWS SERVICE)

Timms-Williams could also be heard shouting for money and saying: “F****** c***, I don’t give a f***.”

At the end of the attack, she was heard saying: “Yeah I needed that.”

The jury returned a verdict of guilty for all three defendants, after which Judge Daniel Williams revoked a reporting restriction preventing the naming of Timms-Williams, who had remained anonymous throughout the trial.

Addressing the jury, Judge Williams said: “Any available sentence for someone convicted of murder is life imprisonment. The court must set a minimum period of imprisonment before a defendant becomes eligible for the parole board to consider release.”

He said in Edwards and Strickland’s case, the likely minimum period would be 30 years and in Timms-Williams’ case 12-years, but this would be adjusted up or down depending on aggravating and mitigating features.

The sentencing of Edwards, Strickland and Timms-Williams has been adjourned until March 25.

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