Bury St Edmunds father and son David and Edward King jailed for life for murder of Neil Charles

A father and son convicted of murdering a suspected thief in a ‘vigilante-style' killing have been sentenced to a combined 40 years in jail.

David King, 56, and son Edward, 20, of Radnor Close, Bury St Edmunds, were sentenced at Ipswich Crown Court today.

David King, a former lecturer and company director, was sentenced to 21 years. Edward King was sentenced to 19 years.

Judge Martyn Levett said the sentencing reflected the tragic impact knife crime had on families and communities.

The sentencing followed a 10-week trial last year after which a jury unanimously found the pair guilty of murdering 47-year-old, Neil Charles, in June 20, 2021.

Both defendants appeared at court today and spoke only to confirm their names.

They had both denied murder.

But Judge Levett said after considering 56 days of evidence, he was 'sure' that the father and son had gone out in the early hours of the morning to inflict 'at least serious bodily harm'.

He also made reference to text messages the pair had made in an WhatsApp group making reference to the vigilante character, Paul Kersey, in the 1974 movie Death Wish.

It followed a series of car thefts and thefts from cars on the estate since 2019.

David King and Edward King were arrested the morning of incident on the Moreton Hall Estate.

Ipswich Crown Court previously heard they staged a 'vigilante' attack and had been alerted to an attempted break-in on the estate which they spotted on their own CCTV in the early hours of the morning.

The pair armed themselves and went out to investigate, without calling police.

Prosecuting barrister, Richard Kelly, told the court, David King carried a Fairbairn-Sykes fighting knife, while Edward had with him a 27-inch Samurai sword.

Both men had ‘amassed’ a collection of ‘deadly weapons' he said over the past few years.

He said they had gone out ‘plainly looking’ for Mr Charles, and there had been a ‘significant degree’ of premeditation.

They used the weapons to attack Neil Charles, 47, from Bury St Edmunds, who according to police had been trying car and house door handles on the estate.

Mr Charles had a number of previous convictions for theft and burglary.

David King used his fighting knife to inflict a fatal 12cm stab wound to Mr Charles chest, while the Samurai sword, carried by Edward king, caused a wound above the victim's left knee.

After the incident, Charles collapsed and staggered from door to door trying to find help.

At around 3.55am, David King called police and told them a man had been trying to steal from his car. He admitted he had been carrying a knife.

Police arrived to find King in Winsford Road, where the stabbing took place. Neil Charles was discovered close by and was taken to Addenbrooke’s Hospital, where died from his wounds.

King was first arrested that morning, and son, Edward, later in the day.

Ipswich Crown court heard that analysis of both men’s text message history revealed they had a fascination with weapons.

They also displayed a desire to deal with any criminal activity in the area themselves with the messages showing a tone of ‘angry resentment’.

They were both rearrested on October 11 and were charged with murder.

During the trial both men denied intentionally killing Mr Charles, with David King maintaining Mr Charles had run onto his knife, after they disturbed him trying to enter their car.

The prosecution however presented evidence to demonstrate that the father and son men had actively gone out together to find and attack Mr Charles, in an apparent 'act of vigilantism.'

Edward King chose not to give evidence during the trial.

In a statement read out to the court, Mr Charles' sister Linnet Booth, a teaching assistant, said her brother was a ‘brother, son and uncle’ who had 'never been aggressive'.

She said the family had put their faith in police and courts to deal with the case – but added: ‘no one had the right to take the life of another'.

Mr Charles’ fiancé, Michelle Jackson, said she has suffered a great sense of loss which she will ‘forever have to deal with’, and that everyone who knew Mr Charles, ‘loved him’.

She said his murder had caused her to feel ‘hatred, confusion, and deep sadness'.

Defending barrister, Kieran Vaughan, said King had received many character references which demonstrated him to be an ‘intelligent, dedicated, family man’.

He said it was not a vigilante act, as vigilantism usually involves gangs.

Nicholas Whitehorn, defending Edward King, said the teenager had amassed a collection of replica weapons, including daggers and swords.

But he added: “He was not someone who was planning a mastermind attack but collecting items he has seen in popular culture."

He said he took out the Samurai sword on the night in question to wave around, ward off Charles, and struck out at Mr Charles’ bicycle.

After the hearing, Detective Chief Inspector Karl Nightingale, the senior investigating officer, said: “Neil Charles had a family who loved him, including parents and siblings, and was due to be married in August 2021.

“At just 47-years-old, Neil’s life was taken by David and Edward King who needlessly pursued and murdered him in the early hours of Sunday 20 June 2021.

“The prosecution was clear from the outset that Neil was actively committing crime on the night he was killed, trying door handles of cars and addresses. Neil did exactly that at the property of the King family.

“However, the trial proved that the actions of the Kings were not spontaneous. Their obsession with weapons, pride over their possessions and threats to harm people who offended them dated, back years prior to the killing of Mr Charles.

“Taking weapons out onto the streets to confront Mr Charles was never the right choice and a criminal offence in its own right. Their choice of weapons - a military dagger and a 27-inch Ninja sword - demonstrate their intentions once they found Mr Charles.

“David and Edward King have shown arrogance and contempt throughout.

“At no point have they shown any hint of genuine remorse or humility for their actions, convincing themselves they did nothing wrong at all. Their efforts to persuade a jury of that rightly failed.

“From the call to the police by David King through to the conclusion of this case they have both told lies to try and save themselves from the sentences they deserve as a result of their choices and actions.

“The vigilante conduct of David and Edward King has destroyed many lives, changed families and impacted their own community.

“From the outside the Kings appeared to have it all, but this case has revealed hidden dimensions to the contrary.”

After sentencing, Heather King, David’s King’s wife and Edward King's mother, said: “David and Edward have been wrongly convicted and we are in the process of appealing.

"We all wish none of this had never happened. I am devastated for both my family and Mr Charles’s family.

"David, my husband is a good man who has worked hard all his life, he has never been in any type of trouble ever.

"I really struggle to comprehend how it is that our family have ended up in this position. My husband and son have been depicted as some type of vigilante.

“They are nothing of the sort.”