The “hero” victim, who sacrificed his life to protect a small child, was killed after multiple beatings, the forensic doctor said.
Richard Woodcock, 38, was found dead by Thames Valley police officers after they entered a property in Milton Keynes, Buckinghamshire, on June 26, 2021.
Police were called to the scene around 9:40 a.m. due to riots at the residence before finding his body.
The Milton Keynes District Court heard that he tried to help a two-year-old boy who was thought to be in danger in his apartment.
A 24-year-old man, Kelvin Odichukuma iguana, was killed by police at the scene.
“He saved the life of a two-year-old boy.”
Prosecutor Tom Osborne ruled that Mr. Woodcock had been unlawfully killed and that an investigation into his death had shown that he had suffered traumatic head injuries consistent with repeated blows to the head.
He added that the little boy, who had received life-threatening injuries and needed surgery, was saved by Mr. Woodcock’s “heroic behavior.”
It is clear that the big kettle was used as a weapon on Mr. Woodcock, the court heard.
Mr. Woodcock was attacked, “his life was lost,” the prosecutor said, but “he saved the life of a two-year-old boy.”
The court was told he was responding after a “quarrel” in his neighbor’s apartment, in which a screaming woman rushed to his house, who was “afraid of his life, obviously in a state of agitation.”
When he went to help, the door was opened, and he was dragged inside and attacked “so much that he was hit with a 4 kg dumbbell,” the investigator said.
Mr. Osborne added that the victim’s death had had a “devastating” effect on his family, who would be “persecuted” by what had happened, and that life had been “misplaced”.
The victim intervened after the woman called for help
Earlier, a court heard that Mr. Woodcock’s wife had called police 999 when she was contacted by a woman screaming for help.
Then Mr. Woodcock decided to go and see if he could help the child in the apartment. A woman and a child escaped from the address before the police arrived.
When police stormed in, they immediately saw the dead man, later identified as Mr. Woodcock.
Thames Valley Police Detective Sergeant Mike West told the court that two firefighters responded to the incident and were at the scene.
Mr. West said teasers had been used against Mr. Igweani, who had become “aggressive.”
“The officers entered the address and saw Mr. Woodcock leaning on the floor. “There was a big kettle there; he had significant head injuries,” he added.
Police opened fire after the man barricaded himself in the bedroom
According to the investigation, Mr. Igveani was secured in the main bedroom after Teizer was discharged, but it was ineffective.
The armed officers tried to enter the room, where the crying of a boy was heard, as well as the sounds of the ongoing attack.
The police firearm was fired when the police entered the bedroom, առաջին first aid was provided.
The prosecutor said that “officers were shot, Mr. Igveyan received gunshot wounds” and was pronounced dead at the scene.
The forensic doctor said that the child was seriously injured and spent two months in hospital but fully recovered.
An investigation into Mr. Igweani’s death will be launched later.
Milton Keynes. After hitting the “heroic” victim with a 4 kg dumb, he sacrificed himself to save the boy’s life. UK news
