simon brass death_ thugs mugged man for iphone then threw him in manchester canal _ mail online

7/27/2019 Simon Brass Death_ Thugs Mugged Man for iPhone Then Threw Him in Manchester Canal _ Mail Online

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Thugs as young as 14 mugged man for hisiPhone then killed him by throwing him in thecanal in city's gay distr ict

Simon Brass drowned after being pushed into the water c lose to Manchester'sCanal StreetPaul Creedy, 20, Kieron Murray, 22, and Leah Garner, 21 were jail ed for ten yearsJack Smith 19, will spend nine years in a young offender's institute

A fif th boy, now aged 15, was s entenced to five years and eight monthsBy Steve Nolan

PUBLISHED: 19:23 GMT, 4 October 2013 | UPDATED: 21:13 GMT, 4 October 2013

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A gang of robbers, who killed one of their victims when they pushed him into a Manchester canal and lefthim to drown, have been jailed today.

Simon Brass, 40, was heard to twice shout 'I cant swim' but three of the gang of five assailants calmlywalked away and one later explained he did not help because he 'wasnt getting wet'.

The youngest member of the group of thugs, who were trying to steal Mr Brass's mobile phone, was just 14at the time of the incident.


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Jailed: Paul Creedy, 20, left, and K ieron Murr ay, 22, right , were sentenced t o 10 years inprison for their part in the death of Simon Br ass who was pushed into a Manchester

canal and left to drown after a failed robbery

Paul Creedy, 20, Kieron Murray, 22, and Leah Garner, 21, were old jailed for 10 years at Manchester Crown

Court today.Jack Smith, 19, will serve nine years in a young offender's institute.

The boy, who is now 15 and cannot be named for legal reasons, was sentenced to five years and eightmonths in a young offender's institute.


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All had pleaded guilty to manslaughter at previous hearings.

Sentencing, Judge Clement Goldstone QC said: 'Simon Brass was pushed into the canal when efforts torob him proved unsuccessful and who you left to die, knowing he could not swim.

'This was not wanton hooliganism or a prank gone wrong. He was the intended victim of a robbery.'

The court had heard that Mr Brass had been targeted in a known spot for 'cruising' around the towpathsnear to Manchesters Canal Street gay village.

The hearing was told that the 'dark, dangerous' surrounding underpasses were frequented by gay men wholooked for casual sexual encounters and who in turn were preyed upon by robbers who were aware their victims would be unlikely to complain to the police.


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Sentenced: Jack Smith, left, will spend the next nine years in a young offender's institute,while Leah Garner, right, was jailed for 10 years

Earlier in the night another victim had been robbed and a good Samaritan who came to his aid was pushedin the canal before the group turned their attention to Mr Brass.

The body of Mr Brass, from Salford and originally from the Newcastle area, was recovered four days later from the canal.

All members of the gang had varying roles in a series of four robberies that took place on the towpath of the Rochdale Canal in the early hours of June 5 last year, said prosecutor Mark Kellet.

'The fact that Mr Brass had hidden his phone clearly frustrated the five defendants intheir attempt to rob him.'

Prosecutor Mark Kellet

Creedy and Murray approached the first victim at about 1.10am and pretended to be police officers lookingfor drugs as they searched his pockets and took a packet of cigarettes.

Three men came to his assistance but Creedy and Murray turned on two of them.

They repeatedly stamped on the head of one and pushed the other into the canal.

Creedy attempted to kick one of the Samaritans hands from the edge of the bank as he struggled to getout before the other defendants joined in pursuing him on foot where eventually the man fell to the floor andwas kicked unconscious.

The five defendants left the scene but returned about 90 minutes later where they came across Mr Brass.

Mr Kellet said: 'Exactly what happened that led to the death of Simon Brass is not clear. However theCrown says that it can be properly inferred that he was thrown or pushed into the canal.


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Gay scene: Mr Brass was killed at a notorious 'cruising' spot close to Manchester's CanalStreet, pictured

'When Simon Brasss body was recovered his iPhone was found in his sock.

'He was clearly alert to the fact that men looking for sexual encounters at the canal locks are frequentlyrobbed of their mobile telephones.

'The fact that he had hidden his phone clearly frustrated the five defendants in their attempt to rob him.'

'This was not wanton hooliganism or a prank gone wrong. Mr Brass was the intendedvictim of a robbery.'

Judge Clement Goldstone QC

Barely two minutes later along the towpath, another man was robbed of his mobile phone by Creedy,Murray and the 15-year-old.

They were arrested shortly afterwards when they attempted to sell the phone in two nearby takeaways.

Following those arrests, CCTV footage was studied which led to the arrests of Garner and Smith.

Creedy and Murray, each received 10-year sentences and will be on extended licence for three years onrelease.

Garner, was also jailed for 10 years and Smith, will serve nine years in a Young Offenders Institute.

The youth was detained for five years and eight months.

Judge Goldstone commented that Smiths comment to a friend about not 'getting wet' was 'callous in theextreme'.


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Hearing: All five members of the gang were jailed at Manchester Crown Court

In a statement issued after sentencing, Detective Sergeant Derek Houston said: 'Mr Brasss life was

tragically cut short when this group decided he was the perfect target for a robbery.'Not at one point did they consider his safety having failed to steal anything from him they pushed him intothe canal and the actions they took were reckless.

'Mr Brasss family have been left with a gap in their lives that will never be filled.

'They will have to live with the fact that their time together was cut drastically short thanks to the selfish actof five callous individuals.

'This has been a painstaking investigation that involved over 1,000 hours of CCTV being studied from over 100 cameras and the smallest of details being analysed.

'I hope Mr Brasss family and friends can take some comfort knowing that the people responsible for hisuntimely death are now being punished for what they did.'

Members of the victims family attended todays sentencing.

In a victim impact statement read out in the court they said they had all 'suffered from this tragedy'.

Both the health of Mr Brasss father, Richard, and stepmother, Hilda, had deteriorated since his death, thecourt heard.

The statement continued: 'As a family we are all very close. Simon was a vital link. He regularly returnedhome for family events and holidays.'

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Report commentrayt, london, 11 hours ago

like most of the population I would like to see them swing

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FictionFighter, The Funny Farm, United Kingdom, 11 hours ago

What's the point in having children if you're not going to raise them properly? Don't leave it to the rest of us to discipline your child.

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irwin, Gravesend UK, United Kingdom, 11 hours agoVile filth the lot of them I hope they read this.

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oldtimer, Galway, 11 hours ago

WHY WHY WHY such short sentences, they caused the death of this man. Is that all a human beings life is worth Ten yearsmeans out in five and free to continue their useless lives.The victim has not got a life to lead.

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simon brass death_ thugs mugged man for iphone then threw him in manchester canal _ mail online

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