Gary Belfield murder detective who snared teen killers tells of 'shocking' and complex probe
by Sophie Doughty · ChronicleLiveIt was a shocking case of extreme violence carried out by three young killers inside their victims' home.
Leandro Lopes, 18, Kriesha Stroud, 15, and Jordan Tams, 17, have been jailed for a total of at least 72 years at Newcastle Crown Court after a jury earlier found all three guilty of murder and attempted murder.
Now after the trio were handed their life sentences, the detective that brought them to justice has lifted the lid on the complex investigation. And today Det Chief Insp Chris Deavin, of Northumbria Police, has told why he believes Gary's murder was so alarming.
He said: "This is an unusual offence in that they have gone into the victims' own home, where they should be safe, and subjected them to an attack. Because the suspects were so young it is an alarming situation to everyone concerned.
"I think you have to be shocked by an event like this. For young people to walk into somebody's home and take the actions that they did and deliver such a high level of violence, the only word for it is 'shocking'.
"My message to anyone who thinks this is a way to resolve a dispute is to think again. The consequences for yourself and others can be life-changing. If you do this it will only end up with us pursuing you and bringing you to justice."
Dad-of-six Gary and Luke, 22, were attacked at their home on Elliott Drive, in Felling, last April.
Newcastle Crown Court heard how the father and son were repeatedly knifed in the flat after returning from a local pub. Luke managed to escape and went to a nearby property to get help.
"Northumbria Police were called on April 27 late on in the evening to a report of a male having been stabbed. He attended a garage telling a male who was working on a vehicle," Det Chief Insp Deavin explained. "Police quickly went round there and found Gary Belfield deceased on the sofa. And from that point a murder investigation was launched."
Luke, who was seriously injured in the attack and taken to hospital, was able to tell police he had seen Stroud, who is the sister of Gary's former partner, outside the flat, and from there police were able to identify their main suspects and establish there had been a dispute between them and the victims. The court later heard the attack arose from a “misguided desire for revenge” for something she believed had happened to her sister.
"From there we also gathered information from witnesses in the case who overheard a telephone call," said the detective. "The content of the call that had been overheard helped paint the picture of the female's involvement. They overheard parts of that conversation and were able to gather information that Leandro Lopes was the third male involved."
Detectives made their first arrests on April 29. Lopes was arrested at a family member's house while Tams was held as he returned home. "The reaction of the male was quite interesting in that he was in a possession of the knife and he accepted that," said Det Chief Insp Deavin. "He said: 'I just wanted to make things right.'
"He then went on to falsely attack the character of Gary Belfield. He had prepared himself for being arrested, other than he still had the knife on him. That was then forensically linked to both Luke Williams and Gary Belfield." However, during interviews all three defendants replied to questions with "no comment".
"They didn't provide an account for their actions.," said Det Chief Insp Deavin. "The reality of it is the female didn't give any account in interview or in court. She hasn't accounted for her actions at all." From there, detectives had to work to establish the roles all three suspects had played in the attack, how they were connected and what was behind the violence.
"Significant work went into trying to link all three people and to establish the full nature of the dispute that they were involved in," said Det Chief Insp Deavin. "That involved a lot of CCTV work and a lot of mobile phone work, which was painstaking in the amount of time it took. It was a complicated case to build."
During the murder trial prosecutors claimed the Stroud played a major part in 'orchestrating' the attack, while Lopes and Tams went into the flat and attacked Gary and Luke with weapons. However, both said in court that they had not intended to kill Gary.
Tams told jurors he went to the flat to get a dog, which the Stroud said she wanted to retrieve. Tams said he believed the home would be empty when they got there and that they intended to creep in to burgle it and take the dog. He then claimed he was scared when he was confronted by Luke and had not intended to stab him or Gary.
Lopes also tried to claim he had acted in self-defence during the trial. He said the only violence he used with a weapon was to stab Gary in the thigh with a screwdriver when he came towards him and caused him to feel frightened. He also said he had only gone to the flat to get the dog, at the Stroud's request.
However, Det Chief Insp Deavin said forensic science proved that the teenagers had been the aggressors, not Gary and Luke. "Using forensic scientists we were able to piece together the sequence of events," he explained.
"The scientists were able to help significantly. Their view point was Leandro Lopes had stabbed Gary Belfield at the start of the attack. It showed that most of the attack had occurred at the furthest point in the premises as if Gary and Luke were retreating, which is important. The science pointed to them trying to retreat into their living room which was the furthest point away from the door. The offenders entered the property. "If they were subjected to attack they had the opportunity to flee but they didn't."
The detective also explained how Stroud had almost recruited Lopes to take part in the attack. "It would be our case that she took Lopes to an address he had never been to before with an intention of being involved in a dispute," said Det Chief Insp Deavin.
"It wasn't Lopes' dispute to have. It was almost as if he was there as a hired hand. He's travelled over from the Walker area to Felling. He had no connection to Gary and Luke. He's got involved in something that's nothing to do with him.
"It's really shocking that a teenager would try to resolve a dispute by taking two people to an address with potentially fatal weapons. I think the dog was the central part on the night. That was their defence, 'we only went to get the dog, we didn't go in to kill anybody and we were the victims'.
"And yet they sustained no injuries. The weapons were taken to the address. It's only fair to form the view that they went there with a purpose. They saw Gary and Luke returning to the address and they still entered the address knowing they were there."
Police are still uncertain exactly how many weapons were involved in the attack, but have established that the killers used at least one knife and a screwdriver. "We believe there were at least two separate weapons used," said Det Chief Insp Deavin.
"Gary had a very distinctive injury to the thigh, and the pathologist said it was consistent with a screwdriver. They provided an account to the court that to get away with this they went to burn clothing. We have received information since that they have disposed of a screwdriver, which we searched for and didn't recover. Despite the fact they they are relatively young they have still had the wherewithal to dispose of items."
The three teenagers were all jailed for life on Thursday, and were named after the Chronicle made a representation to have reporting restrictions lifted, which the judge explains here. Lopes, of Alfred Street, Byker, was handed a minimum term of 26 years, Tams, of Wesley Court, Felling, was told he must serve at least 26 years, and Stroud, of Eastcote Terrace, Walker, will spend a minimum of 20 years behind bars.
Det Chief Insp Deavin added: "It was a case that had many different facets and angles. It is a combination of science and diligent detective work that brings cases like this to justice. And the efforts of the teams that had to process the vast amounts of material. "
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