A “cold-blooded” murderer who stabbed his neighbour to death in a row over motorbike noise has been jailed for life after telling police: “Killing people is not always a bad thing.”
Warning: This story contains images of blood
Jamie Crosbie stabbed Dean Allsop 17 times after becoming annoyed when the victim’s teenage son revved the engine of a motorbike in April last year, Norwich Crown Court heard.
Police bodycam footage showed Crosbie’s face and hands covered in blood after the killing, as he told officers arresting him on suspicion of murder: “That’s a good thing, I’m very happy about that.”
Norfolk Police described a scene of “carnage” when officers arrived, after Crosbie had also stabbed Mr Allsop’s partner Louise Newell and neighbour Kerryn Kray, who had come out to help.
The 48-year-old killer, who was convicted of murder and wounding with intent following a trial last month, was given a life sentence on Wednesday and told he would serve a minimum of 28 years.
Sentencing Crosbie, Judge Anthony Bate told him: “I regard you as a very dangerous man.”
Police described Crosbie as an “extremely violent man” and said Mr Allsop had been killed in a “cold-blooded attack”, in which he had been stabbed as he lay face-down and motionless.
On the evening of the murder, father-of-three Mr Allsop and his son had been working on their motorbikes in Primrose Crescent in Thorpe St Andrew, near Norwich.
Mr Crosbie’s son had revved the engine of one of the motorbikes which annoyed Crosbie, who went to his window and made hand gestures towards the pair, the court heard.
It led to a verbal row in the street before Crosbie armed himself with a knife and a saw.
After seeing his neighbour with the weapons, Mr Allsop rang 999 and said he was being threatened by his neighbour who had a knife.
During the call, Mr Allsop could be heard telling his son to go inside before the 41-year-old was attacked by Crosbie and stabbed multiple times.
Mr Allsop’s son went home and armed himself with a knife before returning to help his father, only to find him seriously injured and covered in blood.
Crosbie then tried to attack Mr Allsop’s son, who retaliated and left the killer with injuries to his head and hand. The teenager then returned home again and raised the alarm with his mother.
Crosbie went back to his home before returning to the scene a few minutes later, where Mr Allsop had collapsed and was lying face-down and motionless on the ground.
Crosbie stabbed Mr Allsop again in the back before turning on the victim’s partner and the neighbour who had come out to help, Norfolk Police said.
Mr Allsop was pronounced dead at the scene and a post-mortem examination showed a fatal stab wound to the chest.
The court heard that Crosbie had used two knives and a saw to kill his victim.
Mr Allsop’s partner, Ms Newell, was stabbed in the chest and suffered a deep cut to her head, while neighbour Ms Kray suffered a serious stab wound to the neck.
Crosbie was initially arrested on suspicion of assault and then later for murder, when he told officers: “That’s a good thing, I’m very happy about that, killing people is not always a bad thing.”
Police said the killing had “striking similarities” to a previous incident in 2018 where Crosbie threatened Mr Allsop with a knife and hammer after Mr Allsop put some rubbish in his neighbour’s wheelie bin.
Crosbie was convicted of weapons and criminal damage offences and given a suspended prison sentence for the 2018 incident.
Following his arrest after Mr Allsop’s death, Crosbie denied murder and pleaded guilty to the lesser offence of manslaughter by diminished responsibility, which the prosecution did not accept.
He was convicted by a jury of murder and the wounding with intent of two women, while being cleared of two counts of attempted murder.
In a statement following Crosbie’s conviction, Mr Allsop’s partner Ms Newell said: “I cannot put into words how this has affected our whole family.
“My children have lost their hero and I have lost my chosen person – the person I chose to spend my life with.
“My best friend, soulmate, my first love.
“Our lives will never be the same without Dean, but we will continue to keep his memory alive.”
Senior investigating officer Detective Chief Inspector Phill Gray said: “This was a cold-blooded attack by a man intent on causing extreme harm to others.
“Dean suffered 17 stab wounds to his body, some of which were inflicted when he was lying face-down and motionless.
“Crosbie’s savage attack didn’t stop there; he stabbed two people who had come to help Dean, one suffering an arterial bleed to her neck.
“Crosbie is an extremely violent man who has no place in society.”
