Three found guilty over killing of father
Three men have been found guilty of the unlawful killing of a father-of-three who died after suffering 155 injuries in a three-day ordeal.
Paramjit Johal, Inderjit Dhesi and Paramjit Singh had all denied the manslaughter of Balbir Singh, who was found dead at in a dingy flat in Tividale earlier this year.
But after a seven-week trial at Wolverhampton Crown Court a jury found the three responsible.
Johal, aged 50, of Baldwin Close in Tividale, Inderjit Dhesi, 31 of Brades Road in Oldbury, and Paramjit Singh, 46, of Wallace Park Road in Kent, will now be sentenced on December 14.
During the trial the court heard how Balbir had been repeatedly beaten and humiliated during a three-day ordeal. This followed a fall-out between the 54-year-old and the defendants. His beard and moustache were shaved, his turban had been removed and he had suffered bruising and fractured ribs. Balbir's body was discovered at his home in Baldwin Close on March 5 after Johal phoned emergency services.
He told the operator a person who was drunk had fallen over and died. Giving evidence during the trial, Johal said he lied to emergency services because he was trying to protect his nephew, Dhesi. He said Paramjit Singh was angry with Balbir Singh for having to pay his £20 debt to a shop keeper. He told the court he tried to resuscitate Balbir using techniques he had seen on television. The court also heard evidence from Mr Singh's widow, Parminder Kaur Kandola, who lived in India while Balbir sent money home.
She said the last time she heard her husband's voice he was being tortured.
Det Sgt Mick Griffiths, from the Force Criminal Investigation Department, investigated Balbir's death. Following the verdict, he said: "This was an appalling and deeply distressing case. Mr Singh was so badly beaten over a long period of time that he ultimately lost his life.
"What led to the sustained violence has never truly been confirmed, but thankfully those responsible have finally been found guilty of this terrible crime." Johal, Dhesi and Singh were originally charged with murder but the jury returned a not guilty verdict on this count following directions from Judge John Warner.
