WALTHAMSTOW: Murderer jailed for 24 years (From East London and West Essex Guardian Series)

WALTHAMSTOW: Murderer jailed for 24 years

5:02pm Friday 10th July 2009 in

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A FAILED asylum seeker has been jailed for a minimum of 24 years for kicking a man to death.

Mossab Belhocine, 19, of Forest Road, Walthamstow, kicked and beat 28-year-old David Cooper to death in November last year.

The Algerian national kicked his victim so hard an imprint of his trainer was left on Mr Cooper’s face.

Belhocine was found guilty of murder and robbery by a jury at the Old Bailey yesterday.

Today he was sentenced to a minimum of 24 years in jail for murder and 10 years for robbery, to run concurrently.

Another charge of robbery will lie on file and he will be immediately eligible for deportation.

Giving the sentence Judge Stephen Kramer called it “a lethal and ferocious attack”.

During the trial the court heard how Belhocine, also known as Adam Saidi, met Mr Cooper in Soho before the pair travelled to the victim's flat in Woolwich.

The killer admitted beating the sales assistant and ransacking the flat for valuables while Mr Cooper lay dying on the floor.