On 8th January 2016 four men broke into Tony Fisher's home in Nottingham in search of money they had heard he kept on the premises. They beat and stabbed Tony Fisher, leaving him to bleed to death while they made away with his life-savings as well as valuables including jewellery. Tony's wife and son found his body the next morning and an inquiry into the murder of Tony Fisher ensued.
Tony Fisher
The 58 year old had spent 27 years working as a maintenance worker at Duncan Macmillan House, a mental health treatment centre. He was described as a "hard-working family man".
On the night of 8th January 2016 at his home in Coningswath Road, Carlton, Tony Fisher was overpowered, and physically restrained. He co-operated with his attackers, giving him the code to his safe, but they tortured and stabbed him to death with his own kitchen knife. He suffered multiple stab wounds and was left to bleed to death while the attackers made off with between £10,000 and £14,000 in cash and other valuables.
Four men - Simon Palmer, Marcus Barton, Nathan Barton, and Jaydon Roberts-Barton - were arrested and charged with murder and conspiracy to rob. The trial at Nottingham Crown Court lasted seven weeks and Jurors were told that the four men had hatched a plan to rob Tony Fisher after hearing he kept his money at home.
Jurors heard how the men carried out the robber on the evening of 8th January 2016 and subjected Mr Fisher to a sustained and brutal assault designed to force him to reveal the whereabouts of his two safes and the access code for one of them. Despite co-operating the men beat and stabbed Mr Fisher multiple times, leaving him to bleed to death.
Simon Palmer
Mr Justice Jay called the 43-year-old from Edwin Street, Daybrook, the "ringleader of this enterprise", and described Palmer as "the sort of man who does not hesitate to use extreme measures to compel others to act against their will."
Speaking directly to Palmer the Judge said, "I am sure that the man with the knife was you, Simon Palmer."
Simon Palmer was convicted of murder and conspiracy to rob. He was given a life sentence and ordered to serve a minimum term of 33 years. When he was being taken away by dock officers he could be heard shouting "I didn't do it" and later shouted "I'm an innocent man."
Marcus Barton
The Judge called Mr Barton a "career criminal" and said the 43-year-old from Raymede Drive, Bestwood, was responsible for recruiting his son, Jaydon Roberts-Barton, and his distant cousin, Nathan Barton. The Judge said he had shown no remorse, and the decision to recruit his son was "both perplexing and sad."
Marcus Barton was convicted of murder and conspiracy to rob. He was given a life sentence and ordered to serve a minimum of 25 years.
Nathan Barton
Nathan Barton, the 23 year old of Heathfield Avenue, Basford, and the distant cousin of Marcus Barton, was found not guilty of murder but was convicted on a lesser charge of manslaughter and conspiracy to rob. He was jailed for 19 years (for manslaughter) and 14 years (for conspiracy to rob) to be served concurrently.
Jaydon Roberts-Barton
The 21 year old of Curzon Gardens, St Anns, was found not guilty of murder but guilty of manslaughter and conspiracy to rob. He was sentenced to 18 years for manslaughter and 13 years concurrently for conspiracy to rob.
Vincent Hawkins
A fifth man, Vincent Hawkins, a 33 year old of Handel Street, Sneinton, was charged with assisting an offender and perverting the course of justice, which he denied. The court was told that about an hour after the murder Jaydon and Nathan met with Hawkins, who took their clothes in a plastic bag to burn in a park in Carlton Hill. Hawkins was found not guilty of assisting an offender but was jailed for 5 years for perverting the course of justice, after helping them try to cover up their crime.
After The Trial
Following the conviction Tony Fisher's wife, Elaine, and son, Andrew, issued a statement on behalf of the Fisher family.
"On the morning of Saturday 9 January 2016 our lives changed forever when my son Andrew and I found the body of my husband Tony, Andrew’s Dad.
"It was immediately apparent on seeing the lifeless body of my husband that Tony had suffered a violent death. It was all your worst nightmares and an image that can never leave my mind.
"Over the days and months that followed we have learnt through the investigation that Tony had suffered a sustained and brutal attack – that he was tortured. To know his last moments on this earth were filled with fear and pain has been something all of Tony’s family have struggled to both comprehend and cope with.
"We wish to make it very clear Tony did not know the men who broke into our home and killed him. He had no association with them whatsoever. He was targeted because they ‘got wind’ that Tony kept his life savings in the house.
"Tony was a local Carlton man. He was one of nine siblings. Everyone locally will know the Fisher family. Everyone locally will also know Tony was a decent, hard-working man.
"As a family we have attended every day of the trial. Listening to the
evidence unfold has at times been frankly too much to bear. However, it was
something we needed to do for Tony. He was robbed of his life and his voice.
As a family we have been united and resolute in seeking justice for him.
"No sentence can ever bring Tony back to us. However, the fact that Marcus Barton, Simon Palmer, Nathan Barton, Jaydon Roberts-Barton and Vincent Hawkins have been found guilty has given us the justice for Tony that we have sought. We have some peace knowing that society has now been protected from these violent individuals. They are callous, heartless, cowards – the very worst of mankind and there is no place in our community for them."
She said, "Simon Palmer, Marcus Barton, Nathan Barton and Jaydon Roberts Barton – a local criminal group – found out he kept his hard-earned life savings at home and hatched a plan to steal the money. They went ‘mob handed’ because they needed Tony to tell them where the safe was and how to access it and all agreed to use violence if necessary to get this information.
"The evidence showed that the injuries to Tony amounted to torture. The next door neighbours heard a commotion lasting up to 20 minutes which shows Tony’s ordeal was prolonged.
"What makes this crime even more horrific is that the group did not have to kill Tony to steal the money. A short audio recording of part of the attack appeared to show the Tony was cooperating with their requests to give the combination for the safe but this was not enough for the criminals and they beat and stabbed Tony to death and then took his money, leaving him for dead."
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