Harrowing footage shows murdered man's body being dragged from Leeds tower block
Murder accused seen to punch and stamp on amputee
Sickening CCTV footage of a murdered man being dragged from a block of flats and dumped into the street has been screened to a jury.
Drug addict Scott Silkstone is on trial at Leeds Crown Court accused of killing amputee Dwayne Tuohey at Gargrave Court in Burmantofts on New Year’s Day.
Police were called at shortly after 8am to say a man’s body was lying outside the front entrance with another man stood over him.
Mr Tuohey, 55, died a short time later from multiple injuries including a bleed to the brain, broken bones and damage to his heart and intestines.
On day two of the trial, the jury were shown images from Mr Tuohey’s flat in Gargrave Court which appeared to contain smashed and overturned furniture with a blood-covered sofa and blood-spatter marks on the wall.
The Crown says Mr Tuohey was subjected to a sustained assault in the flat before being dumped outside.
Then, crystal-clear harrowing footage from the lift, lobby and main entrance of the high-rise block was played, showing what appears to be 51-year-old Silkstone dragging an unconscious Mr Tuohey, who only had one leg, towards the entrance door.
Stopping frequently and appearing to regain his breath, it showed the man then stamping on Mr Touhey’s bare stomach multiple times and throwing punches towards his head.
He then continues to drag Mr Tuohey by his hooded jumper towards the front entrance and then outside onto the pavement.
At that point, two women arrived and were clearly startled at what they see, reversing and walking away before calling the police. Their recorded call was played to the jury saying they feared the man on the floor was dead.
The man in the CCTV footage then removed Mr Tuohey’s trousers before walking away.
Prosecutor Michelle Colborne KC told the jury: “It was a vicious and degrading attack on a defenceless man whom he had already beaten to a bloody state.”
The court previously heard that Silkstone left Mr Tuohey’s body and casually walked to the shop where he bought a milkshake.
Bizarrely, he also dumped Mr Tuohey’s trousers of on the counter of the shop and left them. They were later recovered by the police.
Silkstone was arrested a short time later on suspicion of murder, with the body-worn footage of the officer played to the jury. He could be heard arguing, refusing to believe he was dead.
In fact, Mr Touhey was taken to hospital and died about an hour later.
Silkstone, who denies murder, was wearing identical clothes to the man from the tower-block lobby.
Ms Colborne said both Silkstone and Mr Tuohey knew each other and both had long-standing drug addictions.
She said Mr Tuohey had a leg removed in 2006 and used crutches to get about.
Police had raised concerns about Mr Tuohey’s welfare in the days leading up to his death, that “people had been coming round to take advantage of him”, taking money from him and threatening him.
Body-worn camera footage from a visiting officer to his flat was played to the jury where he was heard asking who had been threatening him.
Footage was also screened that the Crown says shows Mr Tuohey withdrawing money from a Post Office and handing it over to Silkstone in the hours before his death.
The trial continues and is expected to last around seven days.