Gay man's killers have sentences cut (From Your Local Guardian)

Gay Streatham man's killers have sentences cut

10:10am Wednesday 12th November 2008 in Top stories By Court Reporter

Sri Lankan Mohamed Raheem was left to suffocate to death at his flat in Sardeson House

Two brothers who murdered a gay man at his West Norwood flat after one had spent the night with him have had their minimum jail terms slashed by a total of eight years at the Court of Appeal.

Igor Irinel, 22, and Sorin Abuculesci, 34, tied up Sri Lankan Mohamed Raheem and left him to suffocate to death at his flat in Sardeson House on the Holderness Estate on June 2 last year.

After spending the night with Mr Raheem after meeting him in a gay bar, Irinel ransacked his flat with the help of his brother before badly beating and finally murdering Mr Raheem.

After being found guilty by a jury in April this year, Irinel and Abuculesci were respectively sentenced at the Old Bailey to a mimimum of 30 and 28 years in prison.

But on Thursday three judges cut the sentences of both men to 25 years after their lawyers argued the trial judge had placed too much weight on how the men had abused Mr Raheem’s trust.

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