Man jailed for murder and dismembering body

A "violent and dangerous" man who murdered a vulnerable 20-year-old man and dumped his dismembered body in bin bags in a south London park has been sentenced to life in prison.

Dajour Jones, 27, repeatedly stabbed Jamie Gilbey to death in a "sustained and brutal" attack in January 2022.

At the Old Bailey, Jones, of no fixed address, was sentenced to a minimum term of 27 years in prison.

He had refused to attend sentencing either in person or by video link from Belmarsh Prison.

Judge Nigel Lickley KC said Jones's "antics and tantrums" during proceedings showed "utter contempt" for the court and had been intended to "manipulate the system".

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The nine-week trial heard the two men had been living at the same hostel in Upper Norwood, south London, at the time of the murder.

Staff at the Fitze Millennium Centre housing facility said no-one had expected the two men to become friends, the court heard.

Prosecutor Simon Denison KC told the jury Mr Gilbey was a "very vulnerable, physically unimposing 20-year-old man who above all wanted to have friends".

Mr Gilbey had learning difficulties and had reportedly been exploited by individuals at his previous housing facility for money, jurors were told.

He had been out on bail for an attempted robbery but otherwise had no convictions, warnings or reprimands, police said.

Jones had a history of violence and had been on licence at the time of Mr Gilbey's killing for attacking a man in a cycle shop in London Bridge with a broken glass bottle, the court was told.

Charlene Baxter, Mr Gilbey's mother, told the court how her son's death had left her heart "sunken and broken in half".

She added that her younger children "keep asking if the bad man is coming to get them".

Ms Baxter added that Jones's attempts to disrupt court proceedings had "physically, mentally and emotionally drained" her.

At the time of his death, Mr Gilbey and his mother had been estranged for four years. however she told the court she had been hopeful that she would one day rebuild her relationship with her son.

"The world keeps turning but my soul is hollow and barren," Ms Baxter said.

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