Birmingham man convicted of killing flatmate amid 'snitch' row

Pablo Hoad has been found guilty of manslaughter after stabbing Shannon Stanley in the head and neck

A man who fatally stabbed his flatmate in the head and neck during a row over whether a friend was a "snitch" has been found guilty of manslaughter.

Pablo Hoad was convicted of killing 27-year-old Shannon Stanley at the flat they shared in Small Heath, after a trial at Birmingham Crown Court.

Following the attack, the jury heard Hoad, 29, had called 999, saying he had "stabbed a girl through the throat".

He is due to be sentenced at the same court on 16 February.

Ms Stanley died in the early hours of 10 May, 2022, at the flat she shared with Hoad and his girlfriend.

Hoad, who had denied murder, told police he killed her after drinking 10 bottles of Stella Artois and smoking cannabis.

Shannon Stanley died at the scene in Small Heath in May 2022

The court heard the argument started when the defendant demanded that Ms Stanley's friend leave the flat and called him a "snitch".

During the trial, witnesses described how Hoad dragged Shannon into the kitchen where he slammed her against the worktop, stabbed her repeatedly in the head and neck before fleeing the building.

Prosecutor Richard Atkins KC described it as a "frenzied knife attack" on an "unarmed woman".

Friends called an ambulance and provided emergency aid to Ms Stanley, but she died at the scene.

After fleeing the address, Hoad went to a friend's house and called the police.

During the call he confessed to stabbing Ms Stanley, telling the call handler, "I'm the perpetrator, not the victim. I went too far."

The court heard Hoad claimed Ms Stanley was unarmed in his 999 call, but then "changed his story" according to the prosecution, later claiming he acted in self-defence, saying he tried to take a knife off her.

The attack happened on Mount Pleasant, Small Heath, where Ms Stanley lived with Hoad and his girlfriend

He then said she was unarmed and was reaching for a meat cleaver, before changing his account again and saying she had been armed with the meat cleaver.

The case went to Birmingham Crown Court in November 2023 as a retrial, after a jury were unable to return a verdict in 2022.

On Thursday, a jury found Hoad guilty of manslaughter, but not guilty of murder.

'Should have been safe'

In a tribute to Ms Stanley, her family said: "Shannon was a daughter, sister, niece and much loved by us all and all her friends.

"Shannon was living in Birmingham and enjoying life. Her life has now ended in the most violent way.

"She was at home with her friends, where she should have been safe, but the actions of Pablo Hoad that night took her life and her future away.

"He has taken our beloved Shannon away when he could have just walked away instead of doing what he did.

"Our lives will never be the same without her and she is missed terribly by us all."

Det Insp Jim Mahon, who led the investigation, said: "Hoad lost control and repeatedly stabbed Shannon and although he claims he never meant it to get out of hand, he never sought any help for her. Instead he ran home leaving Shannon fatally injured.

"Shannon had many people who loved and cared for her. I hope that they can feel some sense of justice following this result at court."