Brutal murderer will have to spend 28 years in jail

A burglar must serve at least 28 years behind bars for the vicious murder of elderly businessman Roy Blackman.

Mechanic Mark Love was also sentenced to 12 years, to run concurrently, for his part in a violent burglary a month before at the home of champion clay pigeon marksman George Digweed.

A jury of seven men and five women delivered guilty verdicts last week after three days of deliberations following the three-week trial at Maidstone Crown Court.

The 38-year-old, of Frittenden Road, Staplehurst, showed no emotion when the verdicts were read out, or when the sentence was handed down

As he was taken away, Mr Blackman’s family members quietly hugged as they left the court.

Mr Blackman, a garage owner and bird breeder, was brutally beaten to death at his chalet bungalow in Headcorn Road, Biddenden, before burglars fled with a safe containing between £100,000 and £250,000.

The killing was carried out by the same gang that burgled Mr Digweed’s home in Northiam, Rye, East Sussex.

Sentencing Love to life imprisonment, Judge Philip Statman described how the murderer and his accomplices subjected Mr Blackman to a “brutal” attack and outlined the terror experienced by Mr and Mrs Digweed as a taser was pointed at his neck and she was bound with duct tape.

The judge also praised Mr Blackman and his family. He said: “Mr Blackman was well known in his community.

“In my judgement he can properly be described as a good community man.

“He was old school in his attitudes and he regarded the Eng- lishman’s home as being his castle.

“Mr Blackman showed great bravery and courage and his family will be proud of the life he led and his contribution to the community.”

The judge acknowledged Love had children and had been suffering from depression after the break-up of his marriage.

But he said the attacks were “violent” and that he should have known that serious harm would be caused to Mr Blackman based on what had happened at the Digweeds’ property.

Love denied murder and aggravated burglary.

He claimed in evidence he could not remember what he was doing in the hours leading up to the murder because it was “just an ordinary day”.

He maintained he had never been to Mr Blackman’s home, despite his DNA being found there.