Brothers found guilty of murdering 85-year-old sex offender

Henry Thwaites's body was found in Lime Tree Avenue

Two brothers who beat an 85-year-old convicted sex offender to death and dumped his body at the roadside have been found guilty of murder.

Matthew and Luke Roe killed Henry Thwaites near a country estate in Worksop, Nottinghamshire, in July 2022.

Mr Thwaites, who was friends with their mother, had served two prison terms for sexual offences against boys under 16.

The pair were convicted by a jury at Nottingham Crown Court and will be sentenced on 5 June.

A few days before his death on 23 July, Mr Thwaites had driven from his home in Kent to Worksop, where the brothers' mother lived.

He had intended to buy her a Suzuki car worth £600, the trial heard.

Upon arrival, he had also agreed to buy both Matthew, 25, and his 34-year-old brother Luke a Mercedes, prosecutor John Cammegh said.

Later in the day on the way to see a car, the Fiat that Mr Thwaites and the boys were travelling in was picked up on cameras turning on to Lime Tree Avenue at about 22:40 BST, which is where he is understood to have died.

The court was told he was taken out of his car and beaten to death after the attack started inside the vehicle.

His body had been dumped under a metal fence and was found by a motorist the morning after.

Matthew and Luke Roe were convicted at Nottingham Crown Court

Mr Thwaites, who served substantial sentences for sex offences against boys in 1995 and again in 2012, suffered a fractured skull among other injuries.

Luke, of Potter Street, Worksop, and Matthew, of Franklin Road, Jacksdale, were convicted of murder.

The latter was also found guilty of four counts of fraud in relation to Mr Thwaites's bank card, while the jury found his older brother guilty of one count of fraud and not guilty of three others.

Luke was also found guilty of criminal damage after damaging a car windscreen using an unopened beer can.

After the murder, the brothers travelled to Abby Dixon's address in Watson Road, where she helped them dispose of clothes in a garden incinerator.

The jury found the 27-year-old, who was in a relationship with Luke, guilty of two counts of assisting an offender.