Andrew O'Connell death: Sergio Lemori jailed for life for murder
- Published
Lemori was captured on CCTV carrying a stone slab
A man who murdered a rough sleeper by repeatedly dropping a stone slab on his head has been jailed for life.
Andrew O'Connell, 54, from Chatham, Kent, was sleeping in Brighton's Royal Pavilion Gardens when he was attacked on 7 August 2018.
Police described the killing of a "vulnerable and defenceless" man as "brutal and unprovoked".
Sergio Lemori, 33, of no fixed address, was ordered to serve a minimum of 25 years by a judge at Lewes Crown Court.
The court heard he had still not explained why he did it.
Lemori had initially denied the murder, despite CCTV footage showing him committing the offence, police said.
But he changed his plea when he appeared in court in December and was jailed on Monday.
Andrew O'Connell, from Kent, was sleeping in Brighton's Royal Pavilion Gardens
Police said Mr O'Connell was not discovered until the following day, more than seven hours after he had been left dying after being struck four times.
He was taken to the Royal Sussex County Hospital, where he died two days later.
Lemori was arrested on 8 August.
Det Insp Mark Woodall said: "This was a completely unprovoked attack on a vulnerable and defenceless man who was unknown to Lemori and who was simply minding his own business as he slept rough in Brighton's Royal Pavilion Gardens.
"The incident has caused a huge amount of distress to Mr O'Connell's family."
Sergio Lemori initially denied even being in the area, police said
The court heard Lemori dropped the slab on Andrew O'Connell's head four times
He said Lemori initially denied even being in the area at the time, despite the CCTV evidence, and had still not provided an explanation for the attack.
Senior Crown Prosecutor Claire Gallagher said: "The prosecution was able to put together such a strong case that the defendant pleaded guilty to murder at an early stage... knowing that his DNA had been found near the scene and the murder had been captured on CCTV.
"He came armed to the scene, with a weapon - in this case a piece of paving stone - and had obviously pre-planned his attack."