Two men were today convicted of murdering a shopkeeper who was killed during a botched robbery. Three other defendants were acquitted.
Gurmail Singh, 63, was hit over the head with bottles of wine taken from the shelves of Cowcliffe Convenience Store in Cowcliffe, Huddersfield, in February. The robbers made off with sweets, cash, cigarettes and alcohol.
Muawaz Khalid, 20, and Nabeel Shafi, 18, were convicted of murder at Bradford crown court, after a six-week trial. The jurors had deliberated for three days before reaching their verdicts.
Three other men, Umare Aslam, 20, Shoaib Khan, 18, and Rehman Afzal, 18, were cleared of murder.
Khalid and Aslam were convicted of robbery and Khan was found not guilty of a robbery charge. Afzal and Shafi had admitted robbery at an earlier hearing. The jury was told that Khan had admitted a charge of assisting an offender. Sentencing was adjourned until 16 November.
According to the prosecution, Singh died as a result of a "robbery gone wrong" when he "did not meekly hand over his property, his hard-earned money". He was hit at least seven times with a heavy object.
Singh had built up the shop as a retirement business after working in a mill and a factory for 40 years.
The turban he always wore as a devout Sikh was ripped off during the attack. He died in hospital the next day from his injuries.
The court was told that smokers outside the Shepherds Arms pub opposite the shop realised something was wrong when two of the young men ran away. One man, David Singh, trapped the robbers by holding the door closed as they tried to smash their way out.
Two other members of the public, Christopher Stoney and Christopher Baker, tackled them as they eventually fled through the back of the shop, but they escaped.
During the melee, Gurmail Singh lay on the floor, severely injured and bleeding and with his turban torn off.
The jury had been told that when he first arrived in Yorkshire from India in 1963, Singh worked in a mill and then a pipe-making firm.
Five years ago he took early retirement and invested in the convenience store, where he was a popular figure. He worked long hours, opening the shop at 6am and closing at 9pm. He would deliver newspapers or groceries to customers who were unable to leave their homes.
There had never been any trouble at the shop until an attempted robbery two days before the fatal raid. Two men had been involved and Singh forced them away, suffering minor injuries.
The Guardian
