Thomas Campbell killing: Ex-wife among three jailed over torture death

Thomas Campbell was "jumped" on his doorstep at his home in Mossley, police said

The ex-wife of a man tortured to death in his home is among three people jailed for their role in his killing.

Thomas Campbell was ambushed and murdered at his house in Tameside in July 2022, Bolton Crown Court heard.

On Wednesday, Coleen Campbell, 38, was sentenced to 13 years in jail after being found guilty of his manslaughter.

Reece Steven, 29, was ordered to serve a minimum 37 years and Stephen Cleworth for murder was ordered to serve a minimum 12 years for manslaughter.

Steven, of Poplar Street, Middleton, Cleworth, 38, of Charles Street, Heywood, and Campbell, of Bamford Street, Manchester, were all also convicted of conspiracy to rob.

All three had previously pleaded not guilty to their involvement in Mr Campbell's killing.

Police said that on the night of the attack on 2 July last year, Mr Campbell was ambushed as he opened his front door in Mossley by a group who had been lying in wait for him.

The 38-year-old was then dragged back inside his home, tortured and murdered, with an autopsy revealing he suffered at least 61 separate injuries.

Reece Steven (left) was jailed for a minimum of 37 years while Stephen Cleworth was handed a 12-year minimum sentence

The conspiracy to murder Mr Campbell had been "meticulously" thought out and the people closest to him had been used to track his every move, Greater Manchester Police (GMP) said.

Ms Campbell was recruited to share the information they needed to carry out the attack and she provided exact locations of his whereabouts through phone messages and calls to another member of the group, according to GMP.

She told the jury she believed the plan was only to rob Mr Campbell of his two Rolex watches, police added.

It was still not known where the watches were, the force said.

Detectives found a tracker which had been placed on Mr Campbell's van and CCTV had captured Steven, Cleworth and Ms Campbell meeting in public to discuss attaching it to his vehicle.

Det Insp Mark Davis said he had never before seen such a level of violence used in all his 23 years in the police.

"This was a despicable and incredibly violent attack, fuelled by the pure anger and aggression of those involved," he said.

Mr Campbell was "jumped" on his doorstep and then subjected to "such horrific injuries" over the next two hours it was "unimaginable the pain he must have gone through", Det Insp Davis said.

"Even though three people have now been jailed, the investigation team will keep pushing for justice until all of those responsible are brought to justice," he said.

"We continue to appeal to anyone with information about this case to come forward and share it with the police."

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