Scott Silkstone, 51, is on trial at Leeds Crown Court accused of murdering amputee Dwayne Tuohey, 55, with his own prosthetic leg before purchasing a milkshake from a local shop. Silkstone denies the charge.
Attack Details
Prosecutor Michelle Colborne KC told jurors that Tuohey was found with severe injuries near bins close to his flat in Gargrave Court, Burmantofts, in the early hours of New Year's Day. According to the prosecution, Silkstone assaulted Tuohey in his flat, then dragged him into a lift and abandoned him half-naked in the street before buying a milkshake.
When arrested a few streets away shortly afterward, Silkstone was covered in blood and allegedly told officers: "I'll have more injuries than him."
CCTV Evidence
The court was shown CCTV footage from the morning of the attack. At 4:01am, Silkstone was seen entering a lift at Shakespeare Grange before walking back toward Gargrave Court at 4:20am. Colborne said: "He had no blood on his hands when he left before then heading back to, the prosecution says, the deceased's flat." She added that Silkstone appeared "in a heightened state of agitation."
He was not seen again until 6:30am, when he left Gargrave Court and walked to Shakespeare Grange with blood visible on his hands and face. During this time, someone used Tuohey's phone to call a number that had been contacted five times earlier that morning. Silkstone returned to Gargrave Court just before 7am.
At 8am, CCTV captured Silkstone on the first floor, dragging Tuohey along the ground and into the lift. Inside the lift, Tuohey lay on the floor as Silkstone folded his legs and stood over him.
Brutal Assault
Colborne stated that the footage showed Silkstone had "carried out a determined and brutal attack in the living room, which had involved striking his body with various objects while he was bleeding." She noted that Tuohey was completely unable to protect himself or mount any resistance.
Photographs and a floor plan of the living room revealed blood splatter and numerous objects, including a shelf, a prosthetic leg, a crutch, and a heater, all piled together and stained with Tuohey's blood. Regarding the prosthetic leg, Colborne said: "What she [the forensic scientist] can say about that is that it was extremely blood-stained, primarily the cup area of the leg. Runs of blood were visible to her and the leg itself had fingerprint marks in the blood." DNA of both Silkstone and Tuohey were found on the leg, and the prosecution's theory is that it was used as a weapon.
Continued Violence
Colborne argued that Silkstone's conduct after 8am "demonstrates that although he was injured and incapable of defending himself following the violence in the flat, the defendant treated him with contempt and continued to use gratuitous violence throughout a ten minute period." The jury was told that Silkstone struck Tuohey on "no fewer than 28 occasions" on camera, with no response from the victim.
The trial continues.
