Bedford: Hunting knife killer jailed for single stab murder

Kameron Campbell, 26, died of a single stab wound in Bedford on 20 August last year

A man who used an eight-inch hunting knife to defend his ex-partner during a confrontation has been jailed for life for murder.

Frederico Saurini, 51, stabbed Kameron Campbell, 26, at a house in Bedford last August before claiming he only tried to frighten him.

He was sentenced at the Old Bailey and will serve a minimum of 14 years.

Bedfordshire Police said: "Choosing to carry and use knives can have extreme and devastating consequences."

A four-week murder trial, at Luton Crown Court, heard Mr Campbell had allegedly threatened Saurini's ex-partner in the kitchen of the house in Palgrave Road, producing a knife from his waistband.

Kameron Campbell collapsed after fleeing the house in Bedford but died minutes later in hospital

Saurini, who was watching television in another room, pulled a hunting knife from a drawer when the argument between the woman and Mr Campbell spilled out into the garden, the court heard.

He stabbed Mr Campbell once in the chest, with prosecutor Julian Evans KC describing the degree of force as "towards the severe end of the scale".

The trial heard Mr Campbell managed to flee the house but collapsed.

He died at Bedford Hospital just before 19:00 BST on 20 August, about 20 to 30 minutes after he was stabbed.

Frederico Saurini stabbed Kameron Campbell, claiming he was defending his ex-partner and wanted to "frighten" his victim

Saurini, who denied murder and did not give evidence, had earlier told police: "I wanted to frighten him. I was frightened myself."

In a police interview, the Italian national said he had taken "one or two puffs of crack" with his former partner that day.

In a tribute to Mr Campbell, his mother described him as "a loving, caring boy that would help anyone".

A victim impact statement from his father, which was read to the court, said: "Kameron's life ended in tragic circumstances and it is our united sense of grief and loss and justice for him that brings us here today.

"Kameron was a much-loved son, grandson, brother, nephew, papa, boyfriend and friend, who loved the people in his life with passion."

Mr Campbell collapsed close to the property where he was stabbed and died minutes later

Det Insp Richard Stott, from the Bedfordshire, Cambridgeshire and Hertfordshire Major Crime Unit, said: "This was a truly tragic incident in which a young man senselessly lost his life.

"[Saurini] passively waited, the situation escalated, and in that space of time he made the conscious decision to arm himself with a lethal weapon and use it with such force that Mr Campbell was left with a fatal injury."

He added: "Choosing to carry and use knives can have extreme and devastating consequences."