Murderer jailed for life after ‘brutal’ attack on stepfather
A MURDERER who tried to clean up evidence as his fatally injured stepfather lay dying on the floor has been jailed for life.
Leon Port, of Mountain Ash, will serve a minimum term of 18 years behind bars after being convicted by a jury of murdering his 45-year-old stepfather Mark Hopes, of Trealaw in Rhondda, in October last year.
Sentencing at Cardiff Crown Court on Friday, Mr Justice Simon Picken said: “This was a brutal attack in which Mr Hopes was subjected to horrific violence.”
Port’s mother Maria Hopes, 46, will be sentenced next month after she was jointly convicted of the murder by a jury following a re-trial.
His girlfriend Rebecca Donovan was also sentenced on Friday after admitting perverting the course of justice.
The court heard Port and Donovan, both 24, from Mount Pleasant Cottages, met at school and had been in a relationship for about four years.
Prosecutor Christopher Quinlan QC told the court that Donovan went to Pontypridd with her daughter on October 2, while Port stayed with his stepfather.
He said the men drank together all day, before an argument broke out.
Mr Quinlan said: “Together with his mother, this defendant inflicted injuries on his stepfather – her husband – which resulted in his death.”
The judge described the attack as “brutal” and the court heard a vase was smashed over Mr Hopes’ head.
A post-mortem was carried out and the pathologist gave the medical cause of death as blunt force to the head and face.
Prosecutors said blood was “spattered” on the walls and mother and son started to clean the house on Brithweunydd Road in Trealaw to hide the evidence.
The court heard it was not until the next morning that Port called 999 and gave a “lying account” to the police.
Mr Justice Picken said the victim was found unconscious and “slumped” on the sofa by paramedics on October 3.
Port, his mother and girlfriend were interviewed by police and told officers they had not been at the property when Mr Hopes was injured.
Mr Quinlan said Port and Donovan told officers they were together all day, away from his mother’s house. Donovan later admitted lying, saying she knew her partner had been with his father and was worried police would think he was responsible for the incident.
She initially told officers Port had never asked her to lie, but later claimed lying was his idea and she was scared of him.
The prosecutor said: “This was a substantial attempt to escape responsibility.”
In a victim personal statement read out in court, Mark Hopes’ sister Yvonne Smith said her brother had a “heart of gold”.
She said: “He was a hard worker and although he was our big brother, we were all protective of him because he was a big softy.
“He teased us and made us laugh and it is heartbreaking to know he will never be there to make us laugh again.
“Mark had a very close relationship with our mother and they spent many hours together. She is devastated by what has happened.
“She is finding it hard to come to terms with not only losing a child, but doing so in such a violent manner.
“She has not been able to attend the trial, as it has been too hard for her to bear.
“As a family, we now have to live without him and come to terms with the fact he will never see his grandchildren grow.”
Ms Smith added: “Maria Hopes and Leon Port not only beat Mark severely, but sat back and watched him die.
“They thought only of themselves and cleaning up their crime as Mark lay on the floor slowly dying.”
Sally O’Neill QC, defending Port, said her client had grown up in a “difficult environment” and had witnessed domestic violence between his parents from a young age.
She argued the incident had happened “out of the blue” and there was no history of violence between Port and his stepfather and no premeditation.
The defence barrister said Port has learning disabilities and lied to the police due to guilt, panic and a desire to protect his mother.
She added: “He is a young man who faces a very bleak future to add to his very bleak past.”
Lucy Crowther, defending Donovan, stressed her client had no previous convictions and argued she admitted “almost immediately” that she had lied to the police.
She said: “There can be little doubt that she loved Leon Port. She very much regrets what she did that day and her part in it.”
Port was found guilty of murder in May, following a three-week trial, after admitting perverting the course of justice on the first day of proceedings.
Donovan pleaded guilty at a hearing in February to perverting the course of justice.
Port was sentenced to life in prison with a minimum term of 18 years.
Mr Justice Picken told the defendant: “This was a nasty attack in which Mr Hopes’ life was taken away in a brutal fashion.
“He suffered considerably from his injuries before he died and during that time you did nothing to lessen his suffering.
“Your focus was on cleaning up, or at least standing by as your mother cleaned up, to cover what you had done.”
Donovan was sentenced to 16 months in prison, suspended for two years.
The judge added: “I commend Mr Hopes’ family and friends for their dignity in listening to evidence that must have been very distressing for them.
“It is clear that every day Mr Hopes is missed by his family and friends, who now have to face empty days without him because of what you did.”