Man guilty of murdering one of UK's richest men Sir Richard Sutton at family mansion

• Watch Rob Murphy's report

A man “consumed with hatred” has been found guilty of murdering multi-millionaire hotelier Sir Richard Sutton and trying to murder his own mother.

Thomas Schreiber stabbed Sir Richard to death at his mansion in Dorset on April 7 this year in an attack which also left his mother - Anne Schreiber - paralysed.

There was no question it was Schreiber who carried out the attack on Sir Richard, a hotelier, who was one of Britain’s richest men with an estimated fortune of £301million.

Schreiber admitted manslaughter but denied Sir Richard’s murder and the attempted murder of his mother, who was the millionaire’s partner.

The court heard Schreiber felt "humiliated" by his mother and had described her as "gold-digging".

The 35-year-old also pleaded guilty to driving a Range Rover dangerously on the A303, A4 and M3 after the fatal attack.

After a three-week trial at Winchester Crown Court, the jury returned a guilty verdict today (December 17).

The court heard a hatred of his family saw Schreiber carry out the frenzied knife attack at Sir Richard's Moorhill estate.

Sir Richard suffered three deep stab wounds to his face and five to his chest, one of which punctured his heart. He died at the scene.

Police found Ms Schreiber barely conscious, lying in her own blood, having suffered 15 separate injuries. Her spinal cord was partially severed and she is now paralysed.

The jury heard Schreiber had previously suffered from depression and lockdown left him feeling like he was stranded in a "pressure cooker" at home.

In March 2021, he wrote to a friend: “I’m so sad to report that my mind is consumed with hatred of the very worst kind towards my family."

Schreiber told the jury he went "completely crazy" on the night of the incident, saying he saw the knife and "heard a voice" which said ‘attack, attack'.

He said: "I couldn’t physically control what I was doing, I went crazy and I couldn’t stop."

The court heard Schreiber struggled to cope with the death of his father, David Schreiber, an alcoholic, in 2013. 

The defendant accused his mother of being a “gold-digging b****” by leaving his father for Sir Richard and he felt similar outrage towards his sisters.

The fatal attack happened on the anniversary of David Schreiber's death. 

The jury was told the defendant attacked his mother after she arrived home from visiting his grave and told her son “you are drunk, just like your father”.

Schreiber’s defence psychologist said he had "recurrent major depressive disorder" and had years of substance misuse.

But the prosecution expert argued Schreiber knew what he was doing, saying there was no evidence he has a severe disorder – schizophrenia or bipolar disorder.

"He was a lost soul, he had a degree of anger and resentment about his childhood. Not the sort of mental illness that would be an impairment of mental function," said Dr John Sandford.

The jury found Schreiber guilty on both counts after four hours and 51 minutes. He is due to be sentenced on Monday (December 20).

Following the conviction, the family of Sir Richard Sutton said in a statement: “How could any family recover from such a sudden and devastating loss.

“We can never bring back Sir Richard but his spirit will very much live on, alongside the very happy memories we have of our incredible father, brother and grandfather.

“His values of being warm, generous and compassionate to everyone he met will be carried forward by future generations, and will never be extinguished.”