Rochdale axe murderer jailed for life after killing 'friend' Liam Richardson in 'horrific' attack
An axe murderer carried out such a 'horrific' attack on a 'friend' that the victim's mother could not recognise her own son in the mortuary.
Kieran Oldham, 37, violently killed his housemate, Liam Richardson, 21, by bludgeoning him 18 times with an axe at his home in Rochdale on 3 October 2022.
A statement read to Manchester Minshull Crown Court on behalf of Liam's mother, Susan Hartley, described how she "could not bear" to listen to how her son was "brutally murdered anymore."
"How can someone put an axe to someone’s head that many times?" she said.
"I do not understand. It is nothing but evil. Kieran Oldham continued to axe my son until he died. This is the behaviour of a monster."
Ms Hartley told how she went to see her son's body at the mortuary, adding: "This is an experience I would not wish on my worst enemy.
"Seeing my son lay there on the bed made me feel sick and my legs to turned to jelly. His face was so badly injured that he was almost unrecognisable."
She added: "Still to this day, when I close my eyes, I see Liam laying there on the mortuary bed. This is an image that will never leave my mind."
Manchester Minshull Street Crown Court heard how Liam, from Middleton, had fallen on 'difficult times' and had been living with Oldham at his home on Industry Road in Rochdale.
But a judge said it was clear that Oldham 'used' and 'bullied' Liam, who was described as being 'somewhat vulnerable'.
On the evening of 3 October 2022, Oldham bludgeoning Liam 18 times with an axe before leaving him to die from 'catastrophic' head injuries.
Police officers were called to a disturbance at the home and found Liam's body, along with the weapon Oldham used to carry out the murder.
Around four hours later, Oldham turned up at the house of two friends - he was bare-chested, not wearing shoes and covered in blood.
For the next hour and a half, Kieran Oldham exhibited "threatening and unusual" behaviour and kept the couple prisoner in their own bedroom before one of the victims called 999.
However, Oldham fled before police arrived and went on to damage a parked car and attack a 17-year-old man with a metal bar.
After his arrest, Oldham told a web of lies to police and said a gang had chased him and Liam, before they carried out the fatal attack.
The judge said that Oldham had cocaine and steroids in his system, and that he may have been experiencing drug-induced psychosis at the time of the killing.
He had referred to a 'hex' and 'shape shifters' in notes he had written that day.
"He must have been aware of the hopelessness of his situation as he tried to fend off blows from the axe," Judge Maurice Greene said.
Speaking directly to Oldham the judge said: "His family must now live with the consequences of what you have done."
The 37-year-old had pleaded guilty to false imprisonments and affray, but denied murder, instead offering a plea of manslaughter due to diminished responsibility.
A jury at Minshull Street Crown Court found him guilty of murder and he was sentenced to life imprisonment with a minimum term of 22 years.
The mother of Liam Richardson paid tribute to her "beloved" son in court.
She said: "Watching my children grieve for their brother has truly broken my heart.
“Myself and my family will continue to love Liam like he is still here with us, but while grieving because he is not.
"We will never get over losing him and I hope we can do him proud while he watches down on us.”
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