Ronald Smith murder: Robber who stabbed pensioner to death a DAY after being freed from prison is jailed for life
A robber who murdered the man he thought of as his 'uncle' for money the day after being released from prison was jailed for at least 28 years and six months today.
Ronald Smith was stabbed 20 times in a 'fast, lethal attack,' a court heard today.
Today, prolific burglar Paul Cooke, 35, admitted murder on what should have been the first day of his trial.
Mr Smith, who lived alone, was stabbed in the throat, neck, chest, back and side of the head after answering the front door of his maisonette in Cottage Walk, West Bromwich on May 6 last year.
The 65-year-old was cut down and left to bleed to death while the two killers scoured the flat for money before escaping with £600.
Cooke, who for most of his life had known the victim - a personal friend of his father - has refused to name the person he was with at the time of the killing.
They locked the front door after waiting until nobody was around to see them leave and took the keys with them as they fled.
The body was not discovered until a month later when neighbours alerted police.
Mr Cooke was found where he had fallen, at the foot of the stairs behind the door.
Police knew the date of the murder as Mr Smith religiously crossed off dates on his calender at the end of each day and this stopped on May 6.
Cooke realised the victim had money because his father had told him thieves escaped with £2,000 cash in a burglary almost a year earlier, said Mr Amjad Malik QC, prosecuting.
The defendant was freed early from a four year jail term on May 5. He was told he would have to live in Birmingham, but then went missing.
He spent money freely before returning to the scene of the crime to confirm the body had not been found on May 10.
He gave himself up to police the same day for breaching the terms of his early release from prison
Cooke, who at the time was not a suspect for the murder, was still behind bars for the breach when arrested in October last year because traces of his DNA were found under the fingernails of Mr Smith.
Cooke, of no fixed address, was jailed for life by Judge James Burbidge QC, who told him: "In his struggle Mr Smith, was able to provide the evidence that led to one of those responsible being convicted. In one sense, Ronald Smith was able to bring his killer to justice."
Det Insp Ian Iliffe, who has eliminated 240 people in the hunt for the accomplice, said: "The investigation team will not rest until that person is found."
