Pair who kicked their drinking pal to death are found guilty of murder

John Wood, 39, and Wilfred Barlow, 44, face life behind bars after a jury decided they kicked the 50-year-old to death.

The court heard how Mr Robinson suffered at least 19 blows to his head and neck. His blood was found staining the walls and furniture of the flat in Trent House, Margaret Street.

Wood and Barlow did not react as the jury foreman revealed the verdict of "guilty" at Leeds Crown Court. Peter Robinson's brother, Alan, left the court room in silence after the decision.

He will return to court today (Monday, October 24, 2005) to find out what happens to co-accused Paul Darch, 36, who has stood trial alongside the two guilty men.

The prosecution claim Darch was part of a plot to kill Mr Robinson hatched in the hours leading up to his death and that he joined in plans to dispose of the body.

However he is not alleged to have played a major part in the attack.

Wood, of Trent House, Margaret Street, Barlow, of no fixed address and formerly of Bramham Avenue, Chapelfields, and Darch, of Horsman Avenue, off Cemetery Road, denied murder.

During 11 days of evidence, the jury heard how Mr Robinson was attacked after arriving at a cider drinking session at the first-floor one-bedroom flat on February 28.

Witness Karen Bulmer said Wood attacked him in a fit of jealousy because Mr Robinson had recently offered her £5 for sex and touched her breast.

Barlow, who had not met Wood before that day, joined in the attack and she described seeing him stamp on Mr Robinson's head.

Wood and Barlow denied murder, but the jury believed the prosecution.

The next day they discussed disposing of the body by cutting it up with a carving knife.

But Ms Bulmer walked to York Police Station and blew the whistle on the murder.

Later, a pathologist could not decide whether Mr Robinson had died from brain damage caused by the terrible blows, or if he had drowned in his own blood. The jury considered their two verdicts for seven hours. They unanimously found Wood guilty of murder in the flat he rented and was sharing with Mr Robinson.

Later that day the jury convicted Barlow of murder by 11 votes to one.

Victim's friend loyal to the end

KAREN Bulmer was a chronic alcoholic and street drinker well known to the police, but when her lifelong friend was murdered she braved death threats to do her duty to him.

She had already been thrown out of a pub as she tried to tell her story to disbelieving bar staff as she drank from a can of Carlsberg Special Brew.

But, when she arrived at Fulford Road, hysterical and drunk, police could not ignore her pleas and sent a team of officers to the flat.

There they found the bloodied body of Peter Robinson wrapped in a red blanket. Wood and Barlow were sleeping on a sofa nearby.

Bulmer's evidence would prove crucial in convicting the pair. Both had made death threats against her before her desperate flight from the murder scene.

"Karen Bulmer was a lifelong friend of Peter Robinson," said Detective Inspector Steve Maud who headed the police investigation into the murder.

"For all her faults, she was determined to come to court to give her evidence, which she did.

"She had already had a knife to her throat and been threatened by Wood and Barlow. It was a brave step to go down to the police station and to tell what she had seen. We are very grateful to her for her assistance."

Only Ms Bulmer could tell who did what when in the flat on February 28 and March 1, but her story had scientific support, including blood soaked into the shoes of both murderers.

The police team who took over control of the evidence succeeded to such a degree that not once during the three-week trial did the defence question the validity of the forensic evidence.

They argued about what it meant, but they did not dispute that the bloodstains were genuine and caused by the fatal attack.

From them, Wetherby forensic scientist Samantha Warnakulasuriya was able to show the jury where the kicking and stamping attack was carried out and by whom.

She was even able to show that Wood had worn a red t-shirt during the attack and had changed it after it became bloodstained. Police found it bundled with other clothing belonging to Mr Robinson. Wood claimed he had never worn it.

Detectives had no help at all from the murderers, who said nothing in interview during days of questioning at Fulford Road Police Station.

Police treated Miss Bulmer as a vulnerable witness. She gave evidence from behind screens so she could not see the men who had threatened her.

Wood claimed he wanted to take Karen Bulmer away from York and start a new life for her without the drink that had blighted her life for many years.

But he was also furiously jealous when Mr Robinson suggested that Miss Bulmer have sex with him.

That led to the murderous attack that put boyfriend and girlfriend on opposite sides of the court room and will put Wood behind bars for life.

Barlow is now facing a life-time jail sentence for his part in Mr Robinson's murder - but he was once a soldier in the British Army and a mercenary who saw active service in the Balkans.

But his time with the forces was to cause post-traumatic stress which led to a personality disorder.

In January 2001, the suicidal Barlow sparked a major police siege when he threatened to kill armed officers at his home in Bramham Avenue, Chapelfields.

The five-hour stand-off started after Barlow, who suffered from depression, called a neighbour to say he had been drinking and had taken tablets. But when two police officers arrived, the ex-serviceman became aggressive, York Crown Court was told at his sentencing later that year.

As paramedics left his home, he locked himself in, smashed a glass door panel and stuck his head through, brandishing a six-inch kitchen knife.

He told police he had a gun and was not afraid to use it. A trained negotiator and a friend of Barlow's eventually got him to give himself up, and he was handed a two-year community rehabilitation order after being convicted.

Updated: 08:50 Monday, October 24, 2005