Viewers of BBC documentary series Murder Case were fuming after hearing how one killer got just 16 years in prison after brutally murdering a man and bragging about it to pals.
The last episode in the series, aired last night (21.08.19), offered a close look at the police investigation into the savage killing of Stephen Wallace at the hands of Adrian Atkinson.
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Wallace, 46, from Paisley, was found dead at a block of flats on March 4, 2018.
He had sustained horrific injuries in the attack, his skull fractured so badly that pieces of bone had entered his brain.
By the time his body was discovered by a concerned mate, he had already lain dead for two weeks.
At the High Court in Glasgow, a judge heard how Adrian Atkinson, 48, had bludgeoned his victim so badly that investigators had to identify him using his fingerprints.
But Atkinson had reportedly bragged to friends about killing a neighbour and said he had “done him in” using a machete to hack him in the head eight times.
Atkinson pleaded guilty and in October 2018, the judge locked him up for a minimum of 16 years for what he called a “brutal and sustained attack” on a “helpless” victim.
On Twitter, some branded the murderer’s sentence “pathetic” and “unbelievable”, while others insisted that a life sentence should literally mean life.
One tweeted: “Only 16 years, how is that justice? Condolences to Stephan’s family #murdercase.”
Someone else wrote: “A minimum of 16 years, UNBELIEVABLE #murdercase.”
https://twitter.com/JMegafu/status/1164280824449196032
A minimum of 16 years UNBELIEVABLE #murdercase
— maggie cooper (@maggiecooper12) August 21, 2019
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Another demanded, alongside an angry-face emoji: “Why only 16 years? #murdercase.”
A fourth raged: “Even by British standards, 16 years for a psychotic murder is shocking and pathetic #murdercase.”
“So he brutally murdered someone, took pictures of it on his phone, bragged about it and in 16 years he’ll be walking/living amongst us again,” tweeted a fifth, adding: “This is why we need to bring back the death sentence. #murdercase.”
Why only 16 years? 🤬 #murdercase
— 🌸 💙🅱️3️⃣♈️ 💚🌺 (@BevFlannery) August 21, 2019
Even by British standards, 16 years for a psychotic murder is shocking and pathetic #murdercase
— Penelope Mᴥrtin (@icanhaztweetz) August 21, 2019
https://twitter.com/getagripquick/status/1164281492794740741
It’s not the first time this month that telly fans have rushed to Twitter to bemoan the justice system.
ITV’s The Best Little Prison In Britain? had viewers fuming that inmates at a jail on the Isle of Mann appeared to be living a “holiday camp” lifestyle behind bars.
What did you think of the last episode of Murder Case? Leave us a comment on our Facebook page @EntertainmentDailyFix and let us know.