'Rot in hell' cry in court as couple who filmed themselves mocking vulnerable man are jailed for life for his murder

From the Newshound archive · first published 25 September 2026 · last updated 26 September 2026.

Kenneth Newton, 58, and Melanie James, 64, were each sentenced to life in prison with a minimum term of 21 years at Stafford Crown Court on Friday for the murder of Newton's stepbrother Rubin Blount, 28, who had severe learning difficulties. Blount weighed only 40kg at the time of his death in November 2022 and had been subjected to eating from bins, prolonged forced standing, and being left lying in his own urine at their Tamworth home. As the pair were taken down, a shout of 'rot in hell' came from the public gallery, while Mrs Justice Jefford condemned their 'abject failure to help him when he was in pain and suffering'.

Blount had 50 rib fractures — 47 of them sustained in the weeks preceding his death — along with spine fractures, burns and extensive pneumonia.

The pair recorded videos of themselves mocking Blount's looks and mental capacity as he lived in 'abhorrent', mould-ridden conditions.

Prosecutor Jennifer Josephs KC told the court Blount, 'considerably mentally impaired', must have been in 'extreme pain and suffering' before he died.