Eastbourne Murder Sites - 125 Cavalry Crescent, Eastbourne

Murder Site

125 Cavalry Crescent, Eastbourne

Date - 10th July 2005

Victim - Mollie Haynes (1996-2005)

Murderer - Michael Hooker (1955- )


"A Horrible Murder"
In the history of this violent town few murders have been as disgusting as this one not least because the murder weapon was a claw hammer, but also because the victim was a 9 year old girl who was bravely trying to save her Mother from a crazed ex boyfriend.

Eastbourne Murder Sites - Hollywell Shelter, Eastbourne Seafront

Murder Site

Hollywell Shelter, Eastbourne Seafront

Date - 22nd January 2005

Victim - Jennifer Kiely (1969-2005)

Murderer - Unknown

A Sad & Pathetic Death      March 2005
To many Eastbourne residents who had seen Jennifer Kiely shuffle through their town centre she was for all intents and purposes just another 'Mad Bag Lady' pushing around an empty childrens buggy containing items and food that she had  just pulled from the garbage tip, or sitting along the seafront drinking cheap cider with all the other town drunks and dropouts. An irritating and pathetic site to most "just another nutter on the scrounge". But according to a former partner John (pictured below) she enjoyed her life as a mother, bringing up her young family with him. She took her children to the park and was proud of her council house in Orpington, Kent.

But shortly after the birth of her third child, Christopher, in 1993, her life started to go wrong. 
That was 11 years ago.

Last month, her partially burnt body was found in a shelter on the seafront close to Beachy Head in Eastbourne, Sussex. She had been raped and stabbed 16 times.

When police began to investigate the background of the 35-year-old, they found that, on an official form, under the heading of family, "no next of kin" had been inserted.

Ms Kiely's story, up until her violent death, is typical of many other homeless adults suffering from mental illness.

In 1996, she was diagnosed with schizophrenia, which was becoming worse and had left her delusional and withdrawn. She eventually split up with John, who was given the custody of their children, two boys and a girl. Shortly afterwards, she vanished from their home and from their lives.

Despite numerous attempts by her family to trace Ms Kiely, she had made no contact with them for the past six years. After leaving Kent, Ms Kiely went to Brighton, where she sold The Big Issue magazine. In September 2003, she made her way to Canterbury and stayed in a sheltered-housing scheme run by the Scrine Foundation.

Lloyd Hobbard-Mitchell, the chief executive of the organisation, recalled: "She was co-operative. She was not aggressive or angry and kept  herself out of trouble".

In the meantime, her former partner John, daughter Yasmin 15,  and two sons  Andrew 12 and Christopher 11, had tried in vain to get a message to her to say that she was still loved.

Ms Kiely left Canterbury in September 2004 and made her way to Eastbourne.
 Largely built in the late 19th century as a resort for the Victorian upper classes, the town has split into two distinct parts. It remains a fashionable tourist resort and longer-term destination for young, London families looking for a change in lifestyle and cheaper housing, but it also has another side. Large housing estates, bedsit conversions and hostels for asylum-seekers provide a stark contrast to the upmarket image. It was into this second world that Ms Kiely moved.

Police said that while in Eastbourne Ms Kiely was befriended by a woman who let her sleep in her house and take a bath, but that she regularly chose to sleep in the open. She was often seen on the seafront late at night. She was considered to be extremely vulnerable.

John said of her: "She was a caring and friendly person who was left in a vulnerable position due to being affected by an illness. I wish that the family could have found her before this happened."

The police are still unsure what happened early on Saturday 22 January. They know that earlier she had taken a bath at the house where she often stayed, and then went into town. At about 1am she was walking along the seafront when she was probably confronted by her killer. Her body was found in the early hours by council workers in a thatched, half-timbered shelter overlooking the sea. Her killer built a bonfire in the shelter and set fire to the body in an attempt to destroy the evidence.

Two local men have been arrested but both have been released without charge.One theory is that it may have been a  Middle Eastern looking person seen running into the road early that morning, this would fit into the situation as no DNA would be available to the police from the growing number of illegal immigrants now making their home in the seaside town.

Detective Chief Inspector Tony O'Donnell, heading the murder hunt, said: "She was a housewife and mum of three young kids. They seemed to be her life and then she developed this mental health problem and eventually lost everything."

                                                                                                           










jenniferkielymurder

Eastbourne Murder Sites - Gearing Cottages, Friday Street, Eastbourne

Murder Site

Gearing Cottages, Friday Street, Eastbourne

Date - 21st May 2002

Victim - Saffra Leanne Coleman (1981-2002)

Murderer - Steven Foster Gander (1975- )

KILLER JAILED FOR LIFE                                                 

Wednesday 2 October 2002 

TWISTED killer Stephen Gander has been jailed for life after he murdered his ex-girlfriend and then locked their 20-month-old daughter in the same room as the body.Seven hours later, after police were alerted to the crime, they found toddler Layla Coleman cuddled up next to her dead mother Saffra.Blonde-haired Saffra, 21, had split from Gander six weeks before being killed.He bludgeoned her with a hammer before throttling her with a piece of rope.He fell into a 'black rage' after claiming Saffra said she would deny him access to their daughter in the middle of the row at her new home in Friday Street, Langney.Gander, 26, of Linden Close, Eastbourne, admitted murder and was jailed for life by Judge Richard Brown who described it as an 'horrendous act of violence'.Saffra's new boyfriend Jonathan Dixon had left the couple's home at 7am in the morning, Lewes Crown Court heard.Prosecutor Richard Cherrill said, 'When he got home he found the apparently lifeless body of Saffra on the floor of the living room.'He said that Saffra had previously fled to a women's refuge after violence from Gander.'The defendant had been fiercely possessive and issued threats if she were to ever leave him.'Mr Cherrill said, 'The defendant said there was an argument and then a physical confrontation.'He picked up the claw hammer which he said had been on top of the television.'He said he hit her three times with it and she had fallen to the ground and then he sat down on her and used the rope to wrap around her neck.'He said he had then applied the pressure to the ligature for no more than a minute and stopped when she coughed.'Gander claimed to have attempted an overdose after having carried out the murder but was arrested the next day after contacting detectives.He told medics, 'I want to die, I don't want treatment, I deserve to die.'Andrew Campbell-Tiech, defending, said, 'He committed a monstrous act.A crime of passion is often a crime of rejection, and it was the rejection that caused the explosion of rage and death.'Mr Cambell-Tiech said, 'A black rage come done on him' after Saffra told him he would not see their daughter again because of his violence.'

Eastbourne Murder Sites - Ranelagh Court, Beatty Road, Eastbourne

Murder Site

Ranelagh Court, Beatty Road, Eastbourne

Date - 9th September 2005

Victim - Keith Davis (1952-2005)

Murderer - Sylvia Davis (1939- )

3 Years for Murder Wife

A 67-year-old woman who stabbed her husband to death with a bread knife at their home in East Sussex has been jailed for three years.

Sylvia Davis, of Ranelagh Court, Beatty Road, Eastbourne, pleaded guilty to the manslaughter of Keith Davis in July.

The body of Mr Davis, 52, was found in the couple's flat last September. He had died from a single stab wound.

Davis was sentenced at Lewes Crown Court on Wednesday and told she would serve a minimum term of 18 months.

The court heard the couple had only been married for two years, and had a volatile relationship.

She just didn't mean this to happen at all, it was a tragic accident that wasn't supposed to happen  Teresa Davise, daughter

It was told they had spent five hours during the afternoon of 9 September 2005 drinking vodka and whisky in a bar and restaurant near their Eastbourne home, while looking after Davis' three-year-old grandson.

On returning home they had an argument, and after the boy had been collected by his mother, Davis stabbed her husband, puncturing his lung. Mr Davis died later in hospital.

Speaking after she was sentenced, Insp Owen Poplett, of Sussex Police, said alcohol had played a part in the outcome of the couple's argument.

"I think the penalty of three years fairly reflects the use of the knife. As soon as anyone picks up a weapon... tragic consequences can only follow when people are so drunk."

Davis' daughter from her previous marriage, Teresa Davise, described her as a wonderful person, who loved her family dearly.

"She just didn't mean this to happen at all, it was a tragic accident that wasn't supposed to happen," she said.

Eastbourne Murder Sites - Funktion Rooms, Pevensey Road, Eastbourne

Murder Site

Funktion Rooms, Pevensey Road, Eastbourne

Date - 11th July 2009

Victim - Ben Lund (1990-2009)

Murderer - Nicholas David Sitko (1985- )

Nightclub Killer Gets Life     January 2010

A Sussex man has been found guilty of murdering a teenager he spotted chatting up his girlfriend at a nightclub in Eastbourne.

The Funktion Rooms in Pevensey Road, Eastbourne was a badly run hotshop for trouble and it was only a matter of time before someone was going to be killed. when it finally did happen it was for the expected reasons, a drunk chancer had made a move on a pretty girl who had an alfa male boyfriend, the rest of the story is sadly predictable.
Nicolas Sitko, 24, was convicted of killing 19-year-old Ben Lund at the Funktion Rooms, on 11 July 2009, following a trial at Lewes Crown Court.

The court heard he flew into a jealous rage and head-butted Mr Lund before fatally punching him in the neck.

Sitko, of Mendip Avenue, Eastbourne, Sussex, was sentenced to life for the murder, Sitko wept as the sentence was read out and his girlfriend shouted support from the gallery.

Following the verdict Mr Lund's family released a statement which said Ben was "kind, friendly and gentle" and their lives had been "shattered to the core".

He has destroyed not only Ben's life, but that of his family who have found it very difficult to come to terms with the sudden loss of their young son  Det Ch Insp Trevor Bowles

It continued "The stark fact is that Ben was a healthy, bright, intelligence and positive person whose life was literally beaten out of him while on a night out.

"We had no chance to prepare for this incomprehensibly violent act, or to say goodbye. Our son has not been lost, he has been ripped away from us.

"We were a family of five, doing our best, in a loving and caring environment. We were a completely perfect fit, like a puzzle. For the rest of our lives, one piece will be missing. We are incomplete."

Sitko had told jurors he started the fight which resulted in Mr Lund's death because he was annoyed that he was chatting up his girlfriend.

The court heard Mr Lund died as a result of blows to his neck.

Sitko had denied the charge of murder, saying: "It would have been an accident. I wasn't aiming for his neck."

He said Mr Lund swore at him before he head-butted him.

Under cross-examination, Sitko admitted he could, on occasion, become aggressive after drinking and he had given police three different accounts of events.

The court was told he had drunk seven pints of beer and two shots of sambucca while at the nightclub.

Det Ch Insp Trevor Bowles said: "Nicholas Sitko has been found to be responsible for the death of Ben Lund from a violent confrontation at the Funktion Rooms, Eastbourne, on 11th July, 2009.

Eastbourne Murder Sites - St Annes Park, The Avenue, Eastbourne

Murder Site

St Annes Park, The Avenue, Eastbourne

Date - 13th November 2003
Victim - Anthony Raymond Sims (1947-2003)
Murderer - Kim David Alan Chesham (1964- )

Drunk Loser Gets Life    

Tuesday 6 July 2004  

An alcoholic who admitted beating and kicking a fellow drinker to death over a previous conviction has been jailed for life.

Kim David Alan Chesham, 39, 'lost control' in St Anne's Park last November after Anthony Simms started to 'wind him up' about locking his former landlady in a room while drunk.Chesham, who was said to be embarrassed about the conviction, then went and sat on a nearby bench in the hope the 56-year-old father-of-one would wake up.Later he returned to his home in South Street and confessed the murder to police, telling them he had blood over his hands and feet.Police found Mr Simms' body close to a bench in the park, lying under a blanket.Lewes Crown Court heard Chesham later claimed he had heard voices saying 'bad things', but doctors could find no evidence of serious mental problems.Simon Russell-Flint QC, prosecuting, told the court Tony Simms was a 'loving, compassionate and caring' married father-of-one who lived alone due to his drink problem.He said the pair had been drinking cider on a park bench and their conversations had become more heated as the day went on.Mr Russell-Flint said, 'At about 10.55pm the police received a call from the defendant who said he thought he had killed someone.'He said, 'I've got blood over my hands and feet. I know I've done it'. He said he was a paranoid schizophrenic although this is not an opinion shared by experts.He then said, 'I put my hands up to it, I think I've killed someone. I was drinking with someone, my hands are covered in blood. I didn't mean to do it'.'When he opened the door to police he appeared to be unkempt, he appeared to be distressed, he was shaking and his eyes were red. He said he had planned to kill himself that evening.'Officers found Mr Simms with a blanket on him having suffered severe facial injuries. These included a fractured nose, fractured cheekbone, bruising, abrasions and fractures to his ribs.'The defendant told doctors he had heard voices which said bad things. The back of his hand was swollen consistent with him having punched somebody.'Jeremy Gold QC, defending Chesham who has a history of violence, told the court the attack had been sparked by a previous conviction the defendant had for false imprisonment.He said, 'They were perhaps acquaintances rather than friends and this unhappy case is the result of a drunken brawl between them.'This followed from some provocation from Mr Simms, we assert. Harsh words were said in drink but nothing justified what followed.'He accepts that he punched and kicked Mr Simms to death. He has been, and remains, racked with remorse.'There came a time when the drinking became more intense that Anthony Simms made it aware that he knew the details of the defendant's last conviction, a false imprisonment matter.'The conviction was a source of much embarrassment because it involved an incident when drunk when he detained his landlady in a room against her will.'He had behaved belligerently and the police were called.'He was not aware Anthony Simms knew about it and thought it had been mentioned in an effort to wind him up.'Mr Chesham challenged Mr Simms to a fight. He accepts Mr Simms was reluctant but then took a swing and missed and Mr Chesham pushed him to the ground and lost control of himself.'Jailing Chesham, who admitted murder, Judge Anthony Scott-Gall branded the offence a 'dreadful assault'.He said, 'The only sentence I can impose on you is one of life imprisonment.'The presence of a degree of mental abnormality, the absence of any intent to kill, the guilty plea and your contrition act in your favour but an aggravating feature is your propensity to violence when in drink.'You will serve a sentence of 12 years imprisonment before you are eligible for parole

kimcheshammurderer

Eastbourne Murder Sites - Channel View Road, Eastbourne

Murder Site

Channel View Road

Eastbourne

Date - 17th August 2003
Victim - Susan Janet Bailey (1946-2003)
Murderer - Nicholas Terence Bailey (1945-2004)

Nicholas 'Terry' Bailey

Nicholas Terence Bailey was an accident waiting to happen he was a violent husband and a drunk. He never achieved anything in his worthless life, as an ex offender he could never get a job except for the usual dead end occupations like window cleaning and dish washing. He was a seedy man who had been imprisoned for raping an underage girl in 1960, and  had other sex offences on his record. His long suffering wife Sue had finally found the courage to leave him and start a new life but control freak Bailey (known as Terry), wasn't going to let that happen, and on the 17th of August 2003 he left his home in Gilbert Road and made his way to her new home. When he arrived he forced his way in and tried to rape her, as she fought back naked, he strangled her and fled the scene. He informed his son what he had done and in a bizarre suicide attempt told his son to run the car over his head, this failed. But later the coward did manage this when he was found dead in his cell at Lewes prison.

He was a frequent drinker in all the low dives around the area where he lived and when news of the murder broke, one landlord of a pub where Bailey drank (The Windsor Tavern) went so far as to accuse the victim as the villain of the tragedy. The Landlord later even went so far as to announce to the local newspaper that he would try and make Baileys funeral a 'Big Affair' after the madman had killed himself in prison.

Crazed Husband Charged With Murder

 Tuesday 26 August 2003 

A MAN has appeared in court charged with the murder of his wife.Nicholas Terence Bailey, 58, is accused of strangling Susan Bailey in her home at Channel View Road.He was charged by police on Saturday and appeared before magistrates on Monday.Bailey, of Gilbert Road, was remanded in custody to appear at a preliminary hearing at Lewes Crown Court on September 3.He is accused of murdering his wife between Friday August 15 and Sunday August 17.No bail application was made during the seven-minute hearing. Bailey spoke only to confirm his name.The body of Mrs Bailey was discovered at a house in Channel View Road just before midday on Sunday August 17.An inquiry led by Detective Superintendent Chris Gillings, from Sussex Police's Major Crime Branch, was immediately launched.Eastbourne Police worked with scenes of crime officers and a team from the force's Major Crime Branch.

Murderer Found Dead in Prison Cell 19th May 2004

A man on trial accused of murdering his wife has been found dead in his prison cell during the night.Painter and decorator Nicholas Terry Bailey was on trial at Lewes Crown Court charged with the murder of his 58-year-old wife Susan. Mr Bailey, also 58, and from Gilbert Road, Eastbourne, was found dead in his cell at Lewes Prison early on Wednesday by prison officers. The cause of his death is not yet known and an investigation has been launched. Mrs Bailey's body was found at her home in Channel View Road, Eastbourne, last August. The prosecution in Mr Bailey's trial alleged he killed her after finding she had moved out of their marital home when he came home from a golfing holiday in Portugal. Mr Bailey had denied murder and on Tuesday, the day before his death, had told the court he had been "devastated" when his wife left him but admitted their marriage had been volatile.

Nicholasterrybaileymurderer