South Yorkshire killers jailed in 2021 who will spend at least 253 years behind bars

Coley Byrne, aged in his 20s, was fatally stabbed when violence flared at the Gypsy Queen pub in Beighton at around 10pm on Sunday, December 16.

Nobody has yet been charged over the killing.

But a number of other murder investigations in South Yorkshire have concluded this year, with 14 killers locked up in 2021 for the parts they played in the deaths of others.

Between them they have been caged for a minimum of 253 years.

KYLE PICKLES

Kyle Pickles is the most recent killer to have been jailed at Sheffield Crown Court.

The 17-year-old, from Kirkstall Road, Barnsley, killed 15-year-old Loui Phillips in an unprovoked attack in Monk Bretton, Barnsley, earlier this year.

Kyle stabbed Loui in the chest in a jealous rage over a perceived relationship with a girl, and calmly walked away from the scene leaving the teenager fighting for his life.

He had tracked down the girl and Loui using the Snapchat social media platform, which can map the location of users.

Pickles admitted murder and was jailed for life.

He must serve a minimum of 17 years behind bars before he can be considered for parole.

ROSS TURTON

Earlier this month, Ross Turton, was found guilty of the murder of 32-year-old Danny Irons on the Manor estate in Sheffield.

Danny, a father-of-three, was said in court to have been stabbed to death in a dispute over drugs.

Turton, 30, stabbed Danny in his heart, leading him to collapse and die on Fretson Green, Manor, on April 17.

Jurors were told that Turton, who was involved in the cultivation of cannabis, had gone out armed with a knife looking for Danny because he believed was going to burgle a house with a crop in it on Fretson Road South.

Turton, of Danewood Drive, Manor, is to be sentenced on January 10.

THAMRAZE KHAN

Thamraze Khan, who was 31 when he was jailed in July, was sentenced to life and ordered to serve a minimum of 15 years behind bars after being found guilty of the murder of his brother.

Khan, of Club Garden Road, Sharrow, Sheffield, killed his 28-year-old brother Kamran Khan on November 15, 2020.

The brothers had attended a house party in Lowedges and violence flared when they went to Thamraze’s flat afterwards.

BEN JONES

Ben Jones, who was 26 and formerly of Archdale Road, Manor, Sheffield, when he was jailed in April was found guilty of murdering Jordan Marples-Douglas at the victim’s home on Woodthorpe Road, near Richmond, Sheffield.

Jones and another man – who is still at large - forced their way into the property and Jordan, 23, was later found in his bedroom covered in blood after being stabbed.

Jones was found guilty of murder and was sentenced to life and ordered to serve a minimum of 21 years behind bars.

He claimed he had only visited Jordan’s home to buy drugs and that he had unintentionally injured him during a struggle when he was attempting to disarm Jordan.

GARY ALLEN

Gary Allen was jailed for life and told he must serve a minimum of 37 behind bars by a judge who described him as ‘wicked’.

Allen, who was 47 when he was jailed in June, killed mother-of-three Samantha Class in Hull in 1997, and mother-of-four Alena Grlakova in Rotherham in 2018.

He had been cleared of the murder of Ms Class in 2000, but this acquittal was overturned in 2019 after “compelling” new evidence came to light.

Sentencing Allen at Sheffield Crown Court, the judge in the case, Mr Justice Goose, said: “It would not be an overstatement to say that what you did to those two women, and the loss and suffering to their families, was wicked.”

Jurors heard how the body of 29-year-old Ms Class, who was working in the sex industry, was found by children on the banks of the Humber in October 1997.

Ms Grlakova’s body was found naked in a stream in Rotherham in April 2019, four months after she was last seen on Boxing Day 2018. The 38-year-old had been strangled.

She was from Slovakia and moved to the UK in 2008 but, after becoming estranged from her husband and children, she started working in the sex industry.

The court heard how Allen attacked two sex workers in 2000 in Plymouth, just weeks after he was acquitted of Ms Class’s murder after his initial trial.

GABRIEL AND FORIN ANDREI

Gabriel Andrei, who was 41 when he was sentenced in June, and Florin Andrei, who was 45, were jailed for life and each ordered to serve 23 years behind bars for the murder of 43-year-old Catalin Rizea in an attack last October.

Catalin’s own brother, Alexandru Rizea, 45, who was also injured, climbed out of a window of the house where the attack took place and flagged down passing motorists in Worsbrough Common, Barnsley, to raise the alarm.

Officers rushed to the scene of the crime, where they found a blood stained front door.

Inside the house they found the Andrei brothers, who were in the process of cleaning up blood stains.

Officers found Catalin, 43, slumped in a chair, breathing heavily with a black coat draped over his face.

He was rushed to the same hospital as his brother, but died two days later due to catastrophic brain injuries.

The Andrei brothers were arrested on suspicion of Catalin’s murder and wounding with intent to cause grievous bodily harm.

The men denied the charges but were found guilty of both after a trial.

RUBEN MONERO AND ISAAC RAMSEY

Two friends were jailed for life over the death of a man dubbed a ‘hero’ when violence flared at a party in Sheffield.

Marcus Ramsay, aged 35, was stabbed to death in an attack in Firth Park just after midnight on Saturday, August 8, 2020.

He was knifed through his heart while trying to protect his own brother.

Ruben Moreno, who was 18 when he was jailed in July, was convicted of murder and his co-defendant, Isaac Ramsey, also 18, was found guilty of manslaughter.

The pair were sentenced at Sheffield Crown Court and both jailed for life, with Moreno ordered to serve a minimum of 18 years behind bars and Ramsey a minimum of 14 years.

Moreno and Ramsey, then both 17, attended a party in Horninglow Road, Firth Park, and both were armed with knives.

A 24-year-old man was slashed across his chest and abdomen in an incident at the party, which triggered a chain of events which, just 17 minutes later, led to the fatal stabbing of Mr Ramsay the hands of Moreno.

At the time, Mr Ramsay was trying to prevent the pair from chasing his brother through the crowds.

Monero and Ramsey went on the run for several weeks.

KERRY TAYLOR

Kerry Taylor, who repeatedly stabbed her partner to death after an alleged drugs row, must serve a minimum of 18 years behind bars.

Taylor, 42, of Ravenscroft Place, Stradbroke, Sheffield, was found guilty of murdering her 55-year-old partner, Simone Hancock, following a trial.

Ms Hancock was stabbed more than 10 times at her flat, which was also at Ravenscroft Place.

Taylor had claimed she feared she was about to be attacked by Ms Hancock after a row over crack-cocaine at Ms Hancock’s flat and she claimed she had only stabbed her once and was only responsible for manslaughter.

But a jury found Taylor guilty of murder.

JACK PARKES AND TAYLOR MEANLEY

Driver Jack Parkes and gunman Taylor Meanley were each jailed for life and ordered to serve 27 years behind bars over the murder of 20-year-old Lewis Williams in a drive-by shooting in Mexborough in January.

Jurors in their trial were told that Lewis was shot because he was a member of a rival gang.

Parkes, who was 21 and of Arnold Crescent, Mexborough, when he was jailed in October is said to have ordered ‘shoot him’ and Meanley, who was 17 and of Beech Crescent, Mexborough, when he was jailed, obliged.

Meanley accepted discharging the firearm but had denied murder because he claimed he had believed the weapon was a “slam-gun” which could only discharge empty cartridges and make a bang.

Passengers Joe Anderton, who was 18 and of Jubilee Way, Wheatley, when he was jailed and Arlind Nika, who was 16 and of Spelman Street, London, were found guilty of manslaughter on the basis that they were in the car from which Lewis was shot dead. They were both sentenced to 12 years of detention.

RICKY BRAITHWAITE

Ricky Braithwaite was jailed for six years in October for launching an unprovoked attack on his victim, Graham Lindstead, when the men were on nights out in Barnsley town centre the month before.

Dad-of-one Graham was on his way home with his partner when Braithwaite, who had been drinking and had taken drugs, ran up behind him and struck out.

CCTV cameras captured the 38-year-old punching Graham twice, causing him to fall backwards and hit his head on the ground.

He was placed on a life support machine but died four days later.

Braithwaite, formerly of Newton Street, Barnsley admitted manslaughter.

SEAN HOLT AND RICHARD FERRIE

Sean Holt and Richard Ferrie were jailed after admitting their part in an attack which led to the death of Sheffield man, Paul Crossley, in the city last year.

Both men were originally charged with murder, but after their trials began the charges were reduced.

Holt admitted a charge of manslaughter and was sentenced to six years in prison.

Ferrie admitted affray and received an 18-month sentence.

The pair attacked Paul Crossley and his friend Steven Newton in Longley Hall Road on the evening of 15 May 2020, following a dispute earlier that night.

After the initial dispute, which Mr Crossley and Mr Newton walked away from, Holt and Ferrie armed themselves with golf-clubs and followed the men, locating them on Longley Hall Road at around 9.45pm.

When Mr Crossley tried to placate the pair, he was punched by Holt to the face and knocked to the ground. Meanwhile, Ferrie attacked Mr Newton with the golf club, then punched him in the face as he lay on the floor.

Mr Crossley suffered a serious bleed on the brain and was taken to hospital, but fell into a coma and died several days later on May 19.

Mr Crossley suffered a fractured skull, a fractured eye socket, a fractured jaw and damage to his larynx during the attack.