Inmate denies murdering sex offender Robert Coello

An inmate killed a sex offender in his cell by kicking and punching him, causing a fatal brain injury, in a "ferocious attack", a court has heard.

Lee Foye, 27, denies murdering Robert Coello, 44, on 1 August 2010 in HM Prison Grendon, Buckinghamshire.

Prosecutor Neil Moore said Foye, who worked out in the gym, despised 11-stone serial child sex offender Coello.

Luton Crown Court heard there was evidence of Foye's footwear on Coello's body but fists may also have been used.

"The evidence is the defendant repeatedly kicked or stamped or both on his head and body," Mr Moore said.

He said two other inmates nearby heard the noise and went to inspect but the window had been covered in tissue paper.

The attack left Coello, originally from Whitley in Berkshire, with multiple fractures.

'Abnormality of mind'

"His head and body were extensively bruised and he suffered a brain injury that caused his death," Mr Moore said.

He said that, after the attack, Foye, originally from Corby in Northamptonshire, removed his bloodied clothes, which were later found in a prison bin.

Mr Moore said that, before the attack, Foye had said of Coello: "People like that should be put down."

At the start of the afternoon court session, Judge Richard Foster told the jury Foye had been taken back to prison because he was feeling unwell.

Mr Moore said psychiatrists found Foye suffered from a social personality disorder and that the defence would argue he had diminished responsibility at the time of the killing.

He urged the jury to consider the lesser charge of manslaughter.

"All those who assessed the defendant, all the experts, say he was suffering from abnormality of the mind at the time of the killing," Mr Moore said.

The case continues.