'Well-liked' Northampton man was killed by friend who left him for dead following vicious assault at home

A man who killed one of his 'best friends' in a savage assault at his Northampton home has been jailed for 16 years.

Andrew Pomroy was found dead in his Littlewood Close home on June 23 last year. He was 53.

Today (May 27) at Northampton Crown Court, 45-year-old Dale Bates was found guilty of manslaughter and subsequently send down for "ferociously" assaulting Andrew and leaving him for dead.

Her Honour Judge Adrienne Lucking said in sentencing: "It was a sustained beating that began with the infliction of a fatal head injury from which he took at least 36 hours to die.

"You could at any point have called for an ambulance but you did not.

"Andrew Pomroy died alone in his bedroom with multiple untreated injuries."

The court heard how Andrew Pomroy lived alone and was kindly thought of as someone who was well-liked and often tried to help people.

However, he also had a friendship with Bates that was marked with heavily drinking alcohol.

The judge said: "When you are sober you were Andrew Pomroy’s friend but that changed when you had consumed a lot of alcohol; you could become controlling and violent.

"You habitually bullied Andrew Pomroy; forcing him to fetch you drinks, making him apologise when he had done nothing to you.

"On one occasion in a chilling prediction of future events, you said you would kill him and do a life sentence for him one day."

Following a three-week trial, a jury ruled Bates flew into a rage with Pomroy after finding out the 53-year-old had met with Bates' sister and swapped phone numbers.

He reacted to this by assaulting Mr Pomroy so severely he caused a traumatic brain injury, knocked him unconscious and broke his jaw in two places.

But this was only the first beating Bates dealt to his supposed friend.

Sometime between June 19 and June 23, the 45-year-old returned to Andrew's home and relentlessly attacked him again and left him for dead in his home.

The judge said: "You beat him with such severe force that you inflicted a catalogue of over 30 separate injuries, including 17 rib fractures."

The injuries were so severe that a pathologist compared them to what is more likely seen in a car crash or a fall from a height.

His body was not found until June 23. The 53-year-old could have gone undiscovered for up to four days.

Bates handed himself in to police on the morning of June 23. In his police interview he denied inflicting the extent of the injuries and later pleaded not guilty to murdering him.

On May 27, a jury convicted Bates of manslaughter following a three-week trial. He was ruled as "dangerous" by the judge who sentenced him to 16 years in prison.

The judge said: "No sentence that I pass today will feel adequate to those members of his family who will miss him greatly."