Luton man sentenced to life in prison for the murder of David Molloy in Hemel Hempstead

Mohammed Khalid, aged 27, of no fixed address, was previously found guilty by a jury of stabbing 24-year-old David Molloy to death in the early hours of March 13 this year at Saturn Way.

Detective Inspector Justine Jenkins, from the Beds, Cambs and Herts major crime unit, led the investigation.

She said: “I am pleased with the sentence handed down to Khalid today. I hope it provides some closure for David’s family, who have shown nothing but great dignity and composure throughout what has been an unimaginably distressing process.

“I know nothing will bring David back but I hope they feel justice has been done for their loved one now the perpetrator of this awful crime has been convicted.”

Over the course of a three week trial, Luton Crown heard that Mr Molloy had gone to the address in Saturn Way in the early hours of March 13 after being told that Mohammed Khalid was there with his partner, whom he was in an on/off relationship with.

Once David arrived at the address, there was an altercation and he was stabbed three times – twice to the lower back and once to the chest, which caused a fatal wound to his heart. He also had defensive wounds to his arms.

Khalid then fled the address and went to Paul Smith’s flat in Hosking Court, Hemel Hempstead. While there Khalid changed his clothes before leaving in a taxi, which took him to Luton.

Over the next 48 hours Khalid made plans to flee the country to Pakistan. However, he was arrested in London on March 15 as he tried to obtain travel documents.

Matthew Eyles, aged 44, who at the time was of no fixed address and Emma Payne, aged 41, of Eight Acres in Tring were both charged with assisting an offender but were found not guilty by the jury.

Paul Smith, aged 48, of Hosking Court in Maylands Avenue, Hemel Hempstead, was charged with assisting an offender and intending to pervert the course of justice by giving a false statement to police about what had happened on the night of David’s death. He was found guilty of doing an act tending or intended to pervert the course of justice but was cleared of assisting an offender. He will be sentenced on September 18.