Trio guilty of murder after hijacking dispute and attacking wrong man in Tyldesley

A trio hijacked a dispute which had nothing to do with them before going on to fatally stab the wrong person.

Kane Adamson, 19, Joshua Prescott, 20, and Ben Dawber, 19, began to follow a man they thought they had witnessed punching someone outside of a bar.

They then launched a 'ferocious' attack on the believed perpetrator, but it was the wrong man.

Instead they attacked Thomas Williamson, 30, who suffered from mental health problems and was out for a walk to clear his head.

He suffered a series of fatal stab wounds, including one that penetrated his heart and lung.

He died at the scene in an alleyway on Charleston Court, just off Charles Street in Tyldesley, Greater Manchester, shortly after 1am on 25 September 2021.

Manchester's Minshull Street Crown Court heard Mr Williamson died of 'multiple stab wounds'.

One stab wound entered his neck and cut into a major vein while another to his chest penetrated his lung and heart.

He had also suffered bruising to his face and cuts to his hands said to be 'consistent' with being 'defensive injuries' during the 'ferocious' attack, prosecutor Jason Pitter said.

Adamson, Prescott and Dawber have now been told they will each receive life sentences after the trio were found guilty of murder following a trial lasting several weeks.

After deliberations spanning three days, the foreman of the jury delivered unanimous verdicts.

The court was told earlier on the night of the killing a man called David Shuttleworth punched another man, Jake Dinning, who he thought had been 'in dispute' with his girlfriend outside Lounge Bar on Castle Street shortly after 1am, an incident described by prosecutor Mr Pitter as a 'misguided chivalrous act'.

At the same time the three defendants, said to have been drinking vodka and inhaling nitrous oxide balloons, were driving by the bar and 'took the opportunity to involve themselves in the brewing trouble'.

Two of the defendants, Dawber and Adamson, had already pleaded guilty to an attempted robbery earlier that night.

The attempted robbery "was part of the wider behaviour of that group of men that night", Mr Pitter said.

When they pulled up, Mr Shuttleworth ran off as he believed the three men, travelling in a Chevrolet Kalos on false plates, were 'associates' of the man he had just punched.

Mr Pitter said: "That was too good an opportunity for the defendants to miss."

Mr Pitter, who added the defendants 'instructed' a 'reluctant' Mr Dinning to get into the vehicle, replacing a fourth occupant who was left on the street.

The car drove around Tyldesley town centre 'on the hunt for Mr Shuttleworth' who hid in a nearby street, Cotton Close.

At the same time, Mr Williamson appeared and the driver, Dawber, was said to have asked: "Is that him?"

Mr Pitter told the jury: "One of the occupants incorrectly asserted 'yeah, that's him' and it was with these words Thomas's fate was sealed."

The defendants got out of the car and went to the boot and carried out a fatal attack on Mr Williamson.

Mr Pitter said part of the attack was captured on CCTV and one resident had captured an 'angry' male voice shouting 'whatever, whatever' while a 'quieter voice' appeared to be reasoning with others.

The three men attacked Mr Williamson 'on the most tenuous of bases', Mr Pitter said, adding: "It may seem trite but in reality he was the wrong person, in the wrong place, at the wrong time."

Addressing the attack, Dawber, of no fixed abode, said in evidence that he was intending to ‘rob' Mr Williamson.

Mr Pitter asked him: “What were you deciding to do?” Dawber replied: “Beat him up."

Dawber denied Mr Williamson was ‘pleading to be left alone’ and said he didn’t see any aggressive behaviour.

He said Mr Williamson began ‘swinging’ a glass bottle at him before alleging that he ‘pulled a knife out’.

Dawber said Mr Williamson was a ‘big man’ and ‘didn’t know what he was capable of’ and said he was ‘scared’.

He told jurors that he disarmed Mr Williamson by punching him to the face, which made him drop the knife.

Dawber said: “I picked up the knife, he was still standing and he went into his pocket and I thought he was going to get another weapon out." He agreed he didn’t see Mr Williamson produce another knife.

Dawber continued: “I stabbed him twice in the shoulder area. I held the knife like a butterknife, he was bent over."

Mr Pitter asked: “What were you trying to achieve?” Dawber replied: “I was not trying to achieve anything, I was defending myself. I stabbed him to defend myself.”

However, jurors saw through the lies and convicted the trio of murder.

Dawber, Adamson, also of no fixed abode, and Prescott, of Walter Street, Leigh, will be sentenced at a later date, yet to be fixed.

Judge Maurice Greene told them: "In each of your cases there will be a sentence of detention for life.

'I have to decide the minimum term you will each have to serve before you are eligible for the parole board to consider your release.

"I will decide that on a date in the future, you will be told about that date in due course."

Nicky Moore, senior crown prosecutor with CPS North West’s Complex Casework Unit said: "Dawber, Adamson and Prescott were out that night looking for trouble. They carried out a brutal, unprovoked and senseless attack on a stranger.

"The CPS worked with GMP’s Major Incident Team to build a compelling case to place before the jury, including CCTV evidence, eyewitness testimony, mobile phone evidence and mobile phone positioning data to show the three were together before and after the murder. The jury found all three guilty of murder.

"My thoughts are very much with Thomas’s family. Nothing can bring him back, but I hope knowing Thomas’ attackers have been brought to justice will bring them some comfort at this difficult time."