Father and son jailed for life for murdering a thief

Vigilante father and son murdered thief with a WW2 dagger and Samurai sword after sending WhatsApp to neighbourhood group saying they ‘needed Death Wish star Charles Bronson’ when they spotted crook on CCTV – as they are jailed for life

• David King, 56, and son Edward, 20, confronted Neil Charles with a World War Two dagger and a Ninja sword after seeing him trying car doors on their CCTV 
• King previously posted a picture of Charles Bronson in the Death Wish movies on a neighbourhood WhatsApp group chat with the comment: ‘This is who we need’
• Pair were convicted of murder by acting in joint enterprise after 10 week trial 

A father who murdered a burglar outside his house had previously posted a photo of the vigilante played by Charles Bronson in the Death Wish movies on a neighbourhood group with the comment: ‘This is who we need.’

David King, 56, confronted Neil Charles with a Second World War dagger, while his son Edward, 20, wielded a Ninja sword after they spotted him casing their neighbourhood on CCTV.

Two minutes after going outside their £550,000 home to deliver their ‘own form of justice’, Charles had been stabbed in the chest by David and slashed on the knee by his son. He died two days later in hospital.

The pair were convicted of murder by acting in a joint enterprise following a trial and returned to court where they received life terms, with David, a project manager in the construction industry, serving a minimum 21 years and Edward at least 19 years before being considered for parole.

Dismissing claims the defendants intended to lawfully detain Charles in a citizen’s arrest, Judge Martyn Levett told them: ‘I am sure that both of you on that occasion wanted to hunt down the offender and punish him with violence.

‘There was a considerable amount of pre-meditation and planning.’

David King, 56, (pictured) confronted Neil Charles with a Second World War dagger

Mr King’s son Edward, 20, (pictured) wielded a Ninja sword after they spotted him casing their neighbourhood on CCTV

King had previously posted a photo of the vigilante played by Charles Bronson in the Death Wish movies on a neighbourhood group with the comment: ‘This is who we need.’

David King put the photo of Deathwish anti-hero Paul Kersey on the WhatsApp group in June 2019 after the wheels of his wife’s BMW M3 were stolen.

In another message sent to his wife at the time, he wrote: ‘Scum must die.’

Former business studies student Edward, who worked at Tesco, responded with messages saying car thieves should be shot, have their private parts cut off, be drowned or choked before being killed.

He also drew a map showing local houses in their new build estate in Bury St Edmunds, Suffolk, which he believed were likely targets for thieves because of the luxury cars on their driveways.

During their trial, the prosecution said this indicated their desire for ‘retribution’ or to carry out ‘an act of vigilante justice’.

Charles, 47, who had 66 previous convictions, turned up at the estate shortly before 1am on June 20, 2021, and was spotted on CCTV trying the doors of the Kings’ cars.

A neighbour put a message on the WhatsApp group at 1.14am saying someone had tried the door on his car and David King wrote: ‘Snap. Just been out looking for him.’

David King (left) and Edward King (right) were convicted of murder by acting in a joint enterprise following a trial and received life terms

King wielded a World War Two military dagger when going to confront Mr Charles after seeing him on CCTV outside their Suffolk home 

Who was Charles Bronson and what are the Death Wish films? 

Charles Bronson was an American actor who gained international fame for his roles in action, western, and war films. At the height of his fame in the early 1970s, he was the world’s number one box office attraction, commanding $1 million per film. 

He first shot to fame in the 1960s film The Magnificent Seven in which he was cast as one of seven gunfighters. He went on to land leading roles in classics including The Great Escape, The Dirty Dozen, Once upon a time in the West, and arguably his most famous role in Death Wish, among others. 

Death Wish was released in 1974, and is based loosely on the 1972 novel of the same name by Brian Garfield. It was the first film in the series, and was followed eight years later by Death Wish II and other similar films. 

The film follows Paul Kersey, played by Bronson, a family man whose daughter is attacked by three muggers, later causing her death. Spurred on, he becomes a vigilante, killing several muggers in the process.  

Bronson’s health deteriorated in his later years, and he retired from acting after undergoing hip-replacement surgery in August 1998. He died at age 81 on August 30, 2003. 

Two hours later, Charles again tried the handle of a car on the Kings’ driveway outside their detached house and the defendants rushed outside to confront him.

The career criminal was left with a 5in-deep wound to his chest and the injury to his knee. He was so distressed as he hammered at a nearby door for help that he smashed the glass.

David King’s knife was later found by police on a kitchen worktop with DNA from his victim’s blood.

Edward King’s 27in-long Ninja sword, which had a 19in blade, was in the airing cupboard.

Mr King’s snr was initially arrested on suspicion of causing grievous bodily harm and claimed Charles ran onto his blade, telling an officer: ‘He whacked his bike into my hand. Then he ran at me and I had a knife in my hand.’

Officer seized a large array of weapons from the house, including knives, knuckledusters, machetes, and shotguns. David King was a licensed shotgun owner.

Edward was serving a 12-month referral order at the time which was imposed after he waved a machete at a former girlfriend.

During the trial, prosecutor Richard Kelly KC said father and son ‘had harboured for some time angry resentment against those who were thieving locally’.

The pair were convicted unanimously after the ten-week trial last year.

Charles’s fiancée, Michelle Jackson, said in a victim impact statement read out at Ipswich Crown Court yesterday that he was ‘loving, caring and kind and not at all aggressive’.

She added: ‘I am pleased justice has been done. To lose anyone in an accident is one thing but to lose someone in a violent act is something I would not wish on anyone.’

The victim’s sister, Lynnet Booth, added: ‘We know he took a wrong path in life but he was not violent or aggressive. On that night, he was trying to get away.’

Kieran Vaughan KC, defending David King, said he and his son had made the comments about criminals to ‘blow off steam’ rather than meaning them to be serious threats.

David King’s knife was later found by police on a kitchen worktop with DNA from his victim’s blood

Edward King’s 27in-long Ninja sword, which had a 19in blade, was later found in the airing cupboard by police

Nicholas Whitehorn, defending Edward, said all the weapons he collected were from movies including Rambo III and The Expendables.

Speaking after the hearing, senior investigating officer Detective Chief Inspector Karl Nightingale, said: ‘The prosecution was clear from the outset that Neil was actively committing crime on the night he was killed, trying door handles of cars and addresses. Neil did exactly that at the property of the King family.

‘However, the trial proved that the actions of the Kings were not spontaneous. Their obsession with weapons, pride over their possessions and threats to harm people who offended them, dated back years prior to the killing of Mr Charles.

‘Taking weapons out onto the streets to confront Mr Charles was never the right choice and a criminal offence in its own right. Their choice of weapons – a military dagger and a 27-inch Ninja sword – demonstrate their intentions once they found Mr Charles.

‘David and Edward King have shown arrogance and contempt throughout. At no point have they shown any hint of genuine remorse or humility for their actions, convincing themselves they did nothing wrong at all. Their efforts to persuade a jury of that rightly failed.’

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