Halloween Trio Guilty Of Ben Gardner Murder

Three men have been found guilty at the Old Bailey for the murder of a man on Halloween night in 2009.

Following a dispute over a fancy dress Halloween hat in the early hours of 1 November 2009, Ben Gardner, 30, was punched and kicked in the head, causing such severe injuries that he never regained consciousness. He died later that day in intensive care at St Helier Hospital.

Jordon Dixon, 18, Daniel Ransom, 21, and Ross Collender, 21, all from Carshalton, have been found guilty of the murder.

All three will be sentenced at the Old Bailey on Friday, 15 October.

Ben Gardner had gone out with his girlfriend and a friend to celebrate Halloween. The girls were wearing pirate outfits with wigs and pirate hats. The three friends left a club around 3.15am on Sunday 1 November to go and get food before they went home.

Ben's girlfriend waited on some steps whist Ben and his friend got the food - she was approached by three men, two of which were Collender and Ransom, who decided to steal her pirate hat from her. She did not react to this, unaware that this incident would later lead to the attack that would kill Ben.

Approximately 18 minutes later Ben and the girls were on Throwley Way in Sutton when they came across the defendants. Jordon Dixon was wearing a witches' hat on his head when Ben and the girls came across him. It is believed that Ben's girlfriend, recognising the men as those who took her pirate hat, mistook the witches' hat to be hers.

The witches' hat was dropped to the floor and Ben's girlfriend went to pick it up. Jordon Dixon kicked it away from her hand, followed by Daniel Ransom kicking it twice into the road. Ransom then picked up the hat and spat in it before throwing it at her.

Ben was not moving at all when he was punched violently on the side of his head by Ross Collender. He stumbled to the side of the road and attempted to recover from the fall but as he crumpled forwards he was punched a second time by Dixon. Ben fell to his knees before his head hit the ground, Daniel Ransom took a running kick at Ben's head. Witnesses described the kick as a 'penalty kick without the ball'.

Police were on the scene in three minutes. Officers gave first aid and Ben Gardener was taken to St Helier's Hospital by the LAS. He was pronounced dead at 8:07pm on 1 November. The post mortem revealed that Ben died from impacts or impact causing the violent rotation of his head, causing a tear in the vertebral artery and the fatal hemorrhaging inside his brain.

Detective Inspector Bob Campany, from the Homicide and Serious Crime Command, said:

"This tragic case highlights just how easy the transition from anti-social behaviour to standing trial at the Old Bailey for murdering another human being really is.

"However, the transition from this type of needless violence to a long prison sentence is even more seamless. Some young men are just hell bent on violence, usually when under the influence of drink or drugs or a combination of both and they plague our town centres. But the message to them is very clear: You will be caught and you will be convicted."

(BMcN)