LOWEST OF THE LOW
‘Homeless hero’ took horrifying pictures after Arena atrocity - and stole from dying girl’s gran
A HOMELESS man hailed as a hero after the Manchester Arena bombing took photos of the wounded as he stole from a woman whose teenage granddaughter lay dying.
Chris Parker claimed to have rushed into the concert hall to help in the terrible aftermath of the May 22 bomb.
But now the 33-year-old has admitted at Manchester Crown Court that he stole a purse from Pauline Healey, whose 14-year-old granddaughter Sorrell Leczkowski was fatally injured. He also stole an iPhone from a victim who cannot be named for legal reasons.
The M.E.N. has learnt that a series of graphic images were recovered from Parker’s own phone following his arrest. One of them is understood to have been used in international media coverage but it has not been officially confirmed exactly how the image ended up in the hands of those who published it.
The M.E.N. has seen pictures recovered from Parker’s phone which appear to depict the graphic aftermath of the blast. CCTV from the scene captured him walking around with a phone in his hand – and captured his sickening crime.
In a 20-minute compilation of footage from the Arena, too shocking to be released, the defendant is seen going in and out of the foyer, walking around various parts of the entrance. The footage begins with scenes of crowds leaving the Arena visibly flinching as the bomb detonates and, a second later, terrified concert-goers putting their hands to their mouths and running.
Moments later, people gingerly return to the smoke-logged bomb scene and though the footage is pixelated, it is clear there are casualties.
Parker, carrying a rucksack on his back and wearing a woolly cap, is seen walking around, clearly agitated, either looking at his phone or with it to his ear, as dazed people wander around.
He appears to go to the aid of one woman, crouching down as she sits up.
Police, and what appear to be Arena staff in hi-visibility jackets, then appear before more officers arrive en masse.
Parker also speaks to one bewildered young girl, comforting her along with a police officer. The youngster’s mother is believed to be one of the fatalities. The footage reveals that he repeatedly returned to Pauline Healey, whose granddaughter lay dying nearby, before leaning over her body and taking her handbag to steal her purse. Prosecutors said it was clear Parker provided ‘some limited assistance’ to people injured at the entrance to the venue’s foyer. But Manchester Crown Court heard he ‘equally’ took the opportunity to steal in the immediate aftermath of the atrocity. Parker, wearing a grey sweatshirt in the dock at Manchester Crown Court, pleaded guilty to two counts of theft and one of fraud, after using Mrs Healey’s stolen bank card in a McDonald’s in Manchester between May 23 and May 26. Mrs Healey, along with her granddaughter and Samantha, Sorrell’s mother, had gone to the foyer of the Arena to meet friends and had not themselves attended the Ariana Grande concert.
The gran later underwent 15 hours of surgery to remove shrapnel from her body and also suffered multiple compound fractures to her arms and legs, while Sorrell’s mother was also seriously injured. Sorrell, who was a pupil at Allerton High School in Leeds, was hoping to be an architect and wanted to study at Columbia University in New York.
Defending Parker, John Broadley said: “The only he can do is plead guilty and sincerely apologise for his appalling behaviour on that evening.”
Mr Broadley asked for presentence reports on Parker, who has a string of previous convictions, dating from 2000 to last February, including the theft of a purse from a woman and numerous shoplifting and burglary offences.
The only thing he can do is plead guilty and sincerely apologise for his appalling behaviour John Broadley, defending
Parker also admitted a bail act offence after failing to turn up for a scheduled court appearance on January 2. He denied a number of other theft and fraud charges relating to the night of the bomb which will be left to lie on file.
Police issued a warrant for his arrest on December 22 before beginning an active hunt across Greater Manchester and West Yorkshire on December 29. He was discovered hiding in the loft of a property in Halifax before being arrested in the early hours of yesterday.
His electronic curfew tag was found dumped in a can of soup outside a hostel where he had previously been staying. After his arrest Parker had been remanded in custody at HMP Manchester but was unable to leave his cell because of death threats from inmates.
In the days after the attack a member of the public, Michael Johns, was so moved by Parker detailing his ‘heroic’ actions he set up the appeal on GoFundMe to help the rough sleeper.
The fund, now standing at £52,539, will be returned to the people who donated to it.
Judge David Hernandez told Parker a custodial sentence was ‘likely’ at his Manchester Crown Court hearing. He was remanded in custody and will appear in court for sentencing on January 30.