Sheffield Crown Court: Booze-fuelled murderer who beat suspected thief to death is sentenced to life imprisonment

Sheffield Crown Court heard during a trial how Steven Ling, aged 38, of Park Drain, Westwoodside, Doncaster, had pleaded not guilty to murdering Mateusz Chojnowski after his victim was found fatally injured behind The Salutation Inn, on South Parade, near Doncaster city centre.

But after a jury found Ling guilty of murdering the 28-year-old Polish man the judge – Mr Justice Lavender –sentenced Ling to life imprisonment on December 20 with a minimum term of 16 years before he can be considered for release.

Prosecuting barrister Richard Thyne KC previously told the jury Ling had claimed to have seen Mr Chojnowski in his parked Audi SQ7 car at the back of the pub in the early hours of July 2 allegedly stealing money before they became involved in a fight.

Mr Thyne added: “The violence which he used, some of which was captured on the CCTV, was brutal and involved multiple blows – including kicks and or stamps - delivered with severe force. It was an act of sustained retribution which continued even towards the end of the incident when the deceased was lying on the ground, severely injured.”

Ling had claimed he had not intended to cause Mr Chojnowski serious harm and he admitted manslaughter claiming he had been involved in a ‘fight’ after he had tried to stop the deceased stealing from his car.

The defendant, who told police he is a family man who runs a business, had gone out that evening with two friends and they left the Salutation Inn after midnight and went to the Guest Steakhouse and Lounge until 2.30am before his friends caught a taxi home, according to Mr Thyne.

The defendant further told police he was drunk by the time he left his friends and the only reason he went back to the car was to get a house key and because he had left £1,000 and his passport in the car.

Mr Thyne stated that Ling had also said he had taken some cocaine prior to the incident.

Ling was captured on CCTV near The Salutation Inn and on another camera, according to Mr Thyne who claimed Mr Chojnowski ended up on the ground before the men moved to a substation wall and the defendant delivered punches, kicks and or stamps until they both moved out of camera shot.

Mr Thyne said that the defendant repeatedly walked around and returned to Mr Chojnowski and repeatedly assaulted him again and just before 4am the defendant approached a figure on the ground before driving away. Two people found Mr Chojnowski and one of them alerted police but Mr Chojnowski later died in hospital.

A post mortem examination revealed Mr Chojnowski suffered bruises, facial fractures, a fractured skull, bleeding on the brain, rib fracturing, collapsed lungs and severe abdominal injuries.

Mateusz’s mother, Bozena, said after the verdict was returned: “As the mother of Mateusz Chojnowski, I am satisfied that today, justice has been served. This has been a traumatic time for our family, and despite our grief we are pleased with the outcome at court.”

Detective Chief Inspector Rebecca Hodgman, senior investigating officer, said: “The attack on Mateusz, which was captured on CCTV, showed a violent and sustained assault by a single attacker, lasting around 20 minutes.

“Later that day, at around 2.45pm, our control room received a call from Steven Ling’s solicitor. He said Ling had been involved in a serious incident in Doncaster, and that he wished to hand himself in.

“Ling attended Doncaster Police Station at 5pm that day, and was arrested on suspicion of murder.”

Throughout the trial, Ling accepted he had been in what he described as an ‘altercation’ with Mateusz, after finding him in his car. But he denied murder, saying he had ‘no intention of causing serious harm to anyone’.

DCI Hodgman added: “Throughout his trial, Ling denied murder saying he never intended to seriously hurt Mateusz that night. I am pleased that the jury saw through that lie finding him guilty of murder, and that he is now beginning a lengthy jail sentence.

“I want to commend Mateusz’s family for the bravery they have shown throughout this trial. I know that nothing will make up for the loss of their son, but I hope that Ling’s sentence will go some way towards helping them to rebuild their lives.

“A lot of hard work was put in by many officers to get to where we are today. I'm glad that work has paid off and this sentence has been handed out to Mateusz's killer.”