Dad's mutilated body left on road after sadistic vigilantes bundle him into boot
Eight men have been jailed for more than 200 years for murdering a boxer who they accused of preying on a young girl.
Christopher Hughes' mutilated body was discovered on a country road near Skelmersdale, Lancashire, after he was brutally attacked in the false belief he had raped a teenager.
The 37-year-old suffered nearly 100 separate injuries, having been hunted down by the vigilante gang, Liverpool ECHO reports.
Seven men - one of whom ranted at the judge as they were sent down - were convicted last month of kidnapping and murder following a trial at Liverpool crown court, while an eighth admitted the same charges.
Together the eight were sent down for a combined 229 years at the court on Thursday, after a judge branded the murder "brutal" and "sadistic".
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Curtis Balbas and Erland Spahiu had ambushed Mr Hughes in Wigan on February 18 last year, beating him to the ground before binding him, throwing him in a car boot and driving him out to a rural spot.
There he was attacked with a weapon similar to a machete or a hatchet, the court heard, suffering more than 90 injuries to his head, neck, body and limbs.
Christopher Hughes, a father from Wigan, was driven to a quiet country lane and attacked with weapons including a machete (MEN)The court heard both had already driven around the town's Worsley Hall estate looking for him the night before, even turning up and breaking into his house, although he wasn't in at the time.
The dad was found dead by a dog walker on February 22 after he was kidnapped and murdered four days earlier.
The defendants had plotted the manhunt in the mistaken belief that he had been responsible for raping a teenage girl at knifepoint behind a post office.
Erland Spahiu, known as 'Landi', got 35 years (Greater Manchester Police / SWNS)Also jailed were Martin Smith, 34, who acted as spotter in the Audi carrying Mr Hughes, and Razgar Mohammed and Erion Voja who patrolled nearby in a Mercedes.
A "burial party" consisting of Dean O’Neill-Davey, Spahiu, Voja and Andrius Uzkuraitis who helped dispose of Mr Hughes' body were also jailed.
CCTV scoured by police showed the Audi on a road near 34-year-old Spahiu's home on the afternoon of the 18th before leaving 20 minutes later.
O'Neill-Davey, Spahiu, Voja and Uzkuraitis then returned to the scene under the cover of darkness and began digging a grave on nearby wasteland.
The sadistic gravediggers had brought items from Asda the night before to help bury Mr Hughes, using rubber gloves, bin bags and shovels.
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Dean Smeaton O'Neill-Davey will spend a minimum of 25 years behind bars (Greater Manchester Police / SWNS)The men were interrupted in a stroke of luck after police were called to a nearby, unconnected crash, sending them running for cover and abandoning the burial.
The gang then tried to cover their tracks, destroying CCTV, disposing of the Audi and deleting messages between them.
Balbas, from Wigan, pleaded guilty to murder and kidnapping and was jailed for life with a minimum term of 34 years.
Curtis Balbas pleaded guilty of Christopher Hughes' murder (Greater Manchester Police / SWNS)Seven other conspirators were found guilty of the same counts and jailed for life, namely Balbas' brothers-in-law 52-year-old Alan Jaf, 48-year-old Khalil Awla, 40-year-old Razgar Mohammed must serve at least 26, 26 and 27 years respectively.
O’Neill-Davey, 30, who had worked with Jaf and Awla at a garage in the town, will spend a minimum of 25 years behind bars.
Voja and Spahiu - 21-year-old cousins from Albania - were given terms of 23 and 35 years respectively. Smith, also from Wigan, was told he will serve at least 33 years.
Andrius Uzkuratis (Greater Manchester Police / SWNS)Uzkuraitis, of Wigan, was acquitted of murder and kidnapping but convicted of assisting an offender. The 27-year-old was imprisoned for six years.
Smith shook his head as he was sentenced, throwing a plastic cup to the floor while Voja ranted at the judge, saying: "I know myself.
"I'm no murderer. I'll get my justice one day you t***."
He continued his outburst after being led into the cells, where he reportedly began punching walls. Voja added: "I don't give a f*** any more."
Erion Voja swore at the judge as he was sent down for his part in the kidnap and murder plot (Greater Manchester Police / SWNS)Mr Justice Mark Wall called the kidnapping a "slick manoeuvre" done in broad daylight, saying the rape allegation has "instilled a sense of outrage" in the men.
The judge added that, while not doubting the girl had been attacked, there was "no evidence" Mr Hughes had been her rapist.
"I am prepared to accept that you all believed that allegation was true," he said. "But that belief does not begin to justify the attack on him."
"The killing was brutal and, in part, sadistic," the judge added.
"Over 90 separate stab or slash wounds were found on his body. They were inflicted with at least two weapons - a sharp knife and a machete, or something akin to it.
Alan Jaf (Greater Manchester Police / SWNS)"The attack resulted in him receiving deep wounds and him bleeding for death. It would have been, for Mr Hughes, both humiliating and painful.
"The impact of the loss of Mr Hughes' life and the brutality of your attack has been made clear to me.
"Christopher's death is still keenly felt and obviously will be indefinitely into the future.
"He has left behind a young daughter who will grow up without knowing her father. Your acts were designed to circumvent justice and ensure your suspicions prevailed over fact.
"This is murder the seriousness of which is particularly high. It was a murder designed to obstruct or interfere with the course of justice."
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