Prisoner caught smirking on CCTV before beating fellow inmate to death
Two men who beat a man to death in his prison cell were seen smirking as they walked away from the crime scene on CCTV.
Ashirie Smith, 19, and Thierry Robinson, 21, brutally attacked Mahir Abdulrahman, 31, at HMP Fosse Way in Leicestershire on August 20 last year.
Abdulrahman was subjected to taunts by Smith and Robinson, which ended with him throwing a hot kettle at the pair.
The next day, he was found unresponsive by a female prison officer inside his cell with head injuries after being kicked and having his neck stamped on.
Abdulrahman later died at the scene from a subarachnoid basal haemorrhage – bleeding in an area of the brain.
Newly released CCTV showed the moment Robinson and a topless Smith entered the cell before exiting it around 37 seconds later.
Smith was then seen to re-enter the cell and exit again shortly after having carried out the vicious assault.
Police and ambulance crews were called and found Abdulrahman in cardiac arrest at 7.45 am, but he died an hour later.
Yesterday, Smith was found guilty of murder and jailed for life to serve a minimum of 17-and-a-half years at Leicester Crown Court.
Robinson was found not guilty of murder but found guilty of manslaughter and was sentenced to 11 years’ imprisonment.
A third defendant, Shaan Karim, 38, was found not guilty of murder and not guilty of manslaughter.
Detective Inspector Mark Parish, from the East Midlands Special Operations Unit, said: ‘The injuries suffered by Mahir Abdulrahman showed a serious, sustained attack had taken place which ultimately led to his death.
‘Thanks to the hard work of the investigation team, Smith and Robinson have been convicted in court and will now have to face responsibility for their actions.’
Serco Prison Director Wyn Jones said: ‘Any death in prison is a tragedy, but the murder of Mr Abdulrahman was a heinous act. My thoughts remain with his family and those affected by his untimely death.’
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