Drug addict strangled friend then staged burglary

Lee Young, of Howitt Street in Heanor, Derbyshire, was convicted by a jury at Derby Crown Court

A drug addict who staged a burglary at the flat of the friend he killed has been jailed for murder.

Shaun Harriman, 62, was found strangled in his home in Howitt Street, Heanor, Derbyshire, at about 23:55 BST on 30 September last year.

Lee Young, 38, also of Howitt Street, was handed a life sentence with a minimum term of 20 years at Derby Crown Court on Thursday.

Sentencing, Judge Shaun Smith KC told Young: "What you did has had a shattering effect on all those who knew and loved Mr Harrison."

A trial previously heard Young had admitted being a regular user of a variety of drugs, including crack cocaine and heroin.

CCTV outside the room of Mr Harriman had shown the defendant entering the property on the night of his death.

Young had used a ligature, which could not be identified, to "throttle" Mr Harriman.

"He didn't stand a chance," said the judge.

Shaun Harriman's body was found at a property in Howitt Street in Heanor

The court heard following the killing, Young - who had 17 previous convictions for offences including robbery and possession of offensive weapons - bought drugs and later returned to Mr Harriman's property to stage a burglary and distance himself from the crime.

Ahead of sentencing, the court heard from relatives of Mr Harriman.

His mother, Joy, said in a statement that "a mother should never have to live with the nightmare of her son being killed in the way Shaun was", while his eldest sister Julie Barker said: "I never had the chance to say goodbye and tell him how much I loved him."

Mr Harriman's daughter Rebecca Holmes told the court how she had to arrange his funeral and wake just days before giving birth to the granddaughter that her dad would never meet.

Addressing Young, she said: "He was my family, my protector, my teacher, and my friend.

"You didn't just take a life, you imposed a life sentence on me and everyone who loved him.

"We will live with the pain of what you have done, that pain is our burden now."