Two men and a teenage girl have been sentenced to life for the homophobic murder of Dr Gary Jenkins.
Lee Strickland, 36, and Jason Edwards, 26, will spend a minimum of 32 years in prison, with Dionne Timms-Williams, 17, facing at least 17 years behind bars.
Dr Jenkins, who leaves behind two children, was tortured and beaten by the trio in Bute Park behind Cardiff Castle in Wales in July 2021.
The 54-year-old was reportedly at the park to “explore his bisexuality” and was hoping to meet “like-minded men” after his marriage came to an end, a court heard.
CCTV, which played a crucial role in the prosecution’s case, shows him begging for help as the trio assault and rob him.
“Yeah, I needed that,” cameras caught Timms-Williams saying after the attack.
She was seen laughing by a witness as she attacked Jenkins, with a 15-minute-long recording of the incident capturing her calling the victim a “f***ing pig” and telling the others to “do it”.
“Stamp his head now,” Edwards can be heard saying in the clip. “Stamp his head.”
Louis Williams, a witness to the crime, attempted to protect Jenkins from the attack that eventually left him dead.
She told police that Timms-Williams, who was 16-years-old at the time, “clearly was no victim” and is “f***ing evil” and “sadistic”.
The culprits were “in search of vulnerable gay men who were in the park for sex” so they could “target somebody for robbery and violence,” the court was told.
All three admitted to manslaughter but were later found guilty of murder following a trial at Merthyr Tydfil Crown Court and were sentenced on 25 March.
Judge Daniel Williams said the trio showed no remorse for their actions.
“The three of you took an equal part in beating Gary Jenkins to death,” he told them during sentencing.
“Each of you punched, kicked and stamped on him and encouraged each other to do so. For as long as 28 minutes it may be that the three of you beat Gary Jenkins.
“There are no words to describe the audio recording of the attack. You ignored his desperate pleas to stop even after his pleas turned to groans as his life ebbed away.”
Dr Jenkins’ wife paid tribute to her late husband, referring to him as “one of the most humane, kind, compassionate doctors one could ever come across.”
“The loss of many more years and the happy times that Gary could have had with his daughters has been very painful and distressing to bear,” she added.
“We cannot bring Gary back. There are no winners in this case, only losers, but as a family, we are relieved that justice is done. And through this process, we hope to rediscover our trust in humanity.”
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