Rambo knife killer jailed for life

A 24-year-old Warrington man who plunged a 26cm hunting knife into the chest of his girlfriend’s former partner was sentenced to life imprisonment at Chester Crown Court.
Paul Holcroft, 21, (right) will serve a minimum of 18 years.
Holcroft, of Grace Avenue, was found guilty of the murder of Christopher Lamberth on November 17 last year – just a few days before his 21st birthday.
He had denied the offence.
The court was told that Christopher was celebrating his 21st a few days early at his mother’s home in Manchester Road, Warrington.
His ex-girlfriend, Kerry Thomas turned up late in the evening uninvited and the two quarrelled.
She left the house holding her face and got back into her friend Sarah Cooper’s car. She said she had been assaulted by Christopher, and in the early hours of Sunday morning asked to be taken to Warrington Hospital. But she left before being assessed.
On hearing that Christopher had allegedly assaulted Thomas, Holcroft armed himself with a pick axe handle and knife.
He then instructed Sarah and Kerry to drive him to the party. While the girls waited in the car, Holcroft walked up to the front door and demanded to be let in.
On seeing Christopher, Holcroft ran to the front door, unsheathed the knife and in one upward thrust punctured both his lungs and pierced his heart. Christopher lay dying on the doorstep.
Holcroft then ordered Sarah to take him to Woolston in an effort to dispose of the murder weapon and its scabbard.
He then insisted on being taken to Warrington Hospital where he left the two girls in order to visit his partner and their new baby. He was subsequently arrested by police on suspicion of murder.
The court heard that after three days of interviews, Holcroft was charged with murder. Police gathered witness statements and recovered vital evidence, including the murder weapon, which was described as a “Rambo knife” and the leather sheaf that Holcroft had tried to burn.
Forensic evidence showed that Holcroft’s right training shoe had a blood spot on it which matched Christopher’s DNA profile. The chance of this coming from anyone else was one in a billion.

After the hearing, Detective Chief Inspector Paul Rumney said: “What should have been a happy occasion ended in tragedy and has changed many people’s lives.
This family have lost their son, days before his 21st birthday. They are still trying to come to terms with their loss and will never fully recover.
“Holcroft is now paying the consequences of an act of revenge and bravado.”
He added: “A team of detectives worked tirelessly to bring this man to justice in order to show that we will not tolerate such brutal acts of violence.”
Pictured, bottom left: victim Christopher Lamberth