Act of kindness cost landlord his life

Lodger accused of horrific stabbing
A LODGER stabbed his kindly landlord to death before withdrawing all his benefit money, a court heard.

Dale Ross is accused of murdering father-of-three Anthony Dale (51) — known as Tony — in his Chadderton flat on February 3.

But the 46-year-old claims Mr Dale was accidentally stabbed after wielding the knife at him in a drunken rage.

He failed to raise the alarm and the next morning was caught on CCTV using the deceased’s cashcard and pin number to withdraw all of Mr Dale’s £149.66 benefit money the minute Chadderton Post Office opened.

He intended to travel to Scotland to find work, but changed his mind and caught a bus to Oldham Police Station where he calmly handed over the flat’s keys and said there had been a fatality.

Police found Mr Dale’s body slumped on a sofa with a kitchen knife embedded in his chest, but the room was neat and tidy with no sign of a disturbance.

Peter Wright QC, prosecuting, told the jury at the opening of the trial at Manchester Crown Court yesterday that Ross was lodging temporarily at Mr Dale’s small flat, adding: “It was an act of kindness on the part of Tony Dale that we say cost him his life.”

He said the 6in knife was plunged into Mr Dale’s chest while he was sitting on the sofa with such force that it penetrated the breast bone and organs, including his heart, causing rapid death.

The knife had gone in almost to the hilt and was left considerably bent on one side. A pathologist said a severe amount of force would have been needed.

Mr Wright said: “Why the defendant did so only he knows. He says it was an accident and it occurred during a scuffle while they were arguing. We say it was murder.

“There was no scuffle, this was not an accident. The defendant did not raise the alarm and did not call anyone to the flat or call the emergency services. He needed time to gather his thoughts and plan his way out of this mess.”

But after packing his clothes and taking the benefit money, “he must have realised the futility of trying to flee the scene and by now he had another plan and consequently handed himself in to Oldham Police Station and gave the account of a scuffle and an accident”.

He told officers Mr Dale became argumentative and wielded a knife at him in his right hand.

Ross, a heavy drinker, claimed he managed to knock the knife from his hand and pick it up, with a “little scuffle” ensuing during which he caught Mr Dale in the chest before both fell forcefully on to the settee.

He panicked and left the flat in a state of shock before turning himself in — though he never mentioned the cash card.

Mr Dale, who suffered from a condition that caused him problems in gripping and releasing items, was found clutching his spectacles in his right hand. There were no other injuries to indicate any struggle and neighbours didn’t hear any disturbance.

Mr Wright said Ross offered to get a friend to repair Mr Dale’s laptop when it contracted a virus. Instead he pawned it for £100.

On the eve of his death, Mr Dale told a neighbour he was going to tackle Ross about getting the laptop, and £100 he had lent him, back. Mr Wright said he believes this happened and Mr Ross got the knife and stabbed Mr Dale in a moment of anger.

In a statement, Mr Dale’s estranged wife, Jane Dale, said the couple lived in a bungalow in Shaw where they brought up their three sons, enjoying a prosperous life together. But Mr Dale, who ran his own joinery business, descended into alcoholism seven years ago and despite his rehabilitation attempts the marriage suffered and he moved into the flat. He was nearly four times the drink-drive limit when he died.

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