A convicted robber who strangled his elderly uncle has had his jail term doubled at the Court of Appeal.
In October 2014, 43-year-old Alan Morrison tricked his way into his 68-year-old victim’s flat by posing as a different nephew.
He then attacked him – first by strangling and smothering him, and then by slashing at him with a knife, causing injuries to his uncle’s wrists.
Morrison then took his uncle’s mobile telephone to prevent him from calling the police, as well as taking his uncle’s wallet containing approximately £1,900 in cash. He also took personal items from the property, before running off.
Police arrested Morrison later that day and he was sentenced to four years’ imprisonment at Leeds Crown Court in December 2015.
The court was told that Morrison’s uncle had been saving the money to pay for his own funeral because he was dying of lung cancer. He died before Morrison’s trial.
On Thursday, 7 April 2016, Morrison had his jail term more than doubled to nine years’ imprisonment, after a referral by Solicitor General Robert Buckland QC MP.
Speaking after the hearing, Solicitor General Robert Buckland said:
“The facts of this case are quite shocking, involving appalling violence towards an elderly victim and the theft of his life savings.
“It was obvious to me that this sentence needed to be looked at again – and I am very pleased the Court of Appeal has substantially increased Morrison’s sentence.”
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