A man has been jailed for 21 years with a five-year extended license after beating a man to death and then leaving him to die at an address in south-east London.
Paul Campbell, 43, of Dunheved Road West, Thornton Heath, was found guilty at Woolwich Crown Court of the manslaughter of 62-year-old former doctor Gordon Ogunmuyiwa. The sentence followed a three-week trial that concluded on Thursday, 8 May.
The court heard that on Saturday, 24 December 2022, Campbell had brutally assaulted Gordon, who had visited him at his property. Before fleeing, Campbell had called the paramedics; however, by the time they had arrived, Gordon was already dead.
Detective Chief Inspector Samantha Townsend, who led the Met’s investigation, said, “My thoughts and those of my team remain with Gordon’s family, a much-loved brother, friend and neighbour.
“Gordon was a gentle man with no history of violence. Ill-health, however, had seen him become increasingly vulnerable – something Campbell, a selfish and self-serving man, took advantage of. It is hard to make sense of Campbell’s actions; however, I can only hope that today’s sentence can go some way in providing a sense of justice to Gordon’s family.”
On the day of Gordon’s death, police were called by the London Ambulance Service at 11:00hrs to a report of a man who had died in a house of multiple occupancy in Dunheved Road West, Thornton Heath.
Officers attended and were informed by paramedics that Campbell, the registered tenant of the address, was not present.
Detectives attempted to contact him but were unsuccessful in doing so. This led officers to make enquiries into Campbell, which resulted in a murder investigation being launched.
Police interviewed fellow residents at the hostel and quickly established a pattern of behaviour that saw Gordon suffer brutal beatings by Campbell.
A financial search also uncovered that Campbell had been using Gordon’s credit cards. He had bought an iPhone from a second-hand shop, using those cards, a week after Gordon died.
On Wednesday, 11 January 2023, Campbell was arrested on suspicion of murder and charged the next day.
A post-mortem examination was conducted, and it was clear that Gordon had multiple injuries borne over time.
However, the assault, heard by neighbours on Saturday, 23 December 2022, was declared to have been particularly vicious and ultimately led to his death.
