After murdering a senior by strangling him to death and stealing his car on New Year’s Eve, a “calculated and wicked” killer was sentenced to 19 years in prison.
Ian Dunne, a 44-year-old Blackpool resident who strangled Malcolm Frary, 76, in his own house using the string from his jogging pants, then “told lie after lie” to hide his tracks.
The widower’s car was found abandoned, and his cell phone was recovered close to rail tracks.
When Dunne was detained, he initially denied knowing how Mr. Frary passed away, but he eventually acknowledged to having killed him.
After admitting guilt to murder at Preston Crown Court, he was sentenced to a minimum of 19 years in prison.
After a neighbour saw a broken glass panel in Mr. Frary’s front door and the curtains were still drawn, Mr. Frary’s son was alerted to the body on New Year’s Day.
At 4.35 p.m. on that day, police went to the house, and ambulance workers confirmed the widower’s untimely death.
An investigation into the murder was opened after a Home Office post-mortem determined the cause of death to be strangling.
When investigators learned Mr. Frary had driven a friend of the family to work in his Vauxhall Meriva at around 5.40 p.m. on December 31, Dunne was soon connected to the crime.
They discovered that Dunne was also in the car at the time, and after dropping off the buddy, Mr. Frary drove Dunne to his house.
A few minutes later, at around 6.20 o’clock, a neighbour saw Dunne rapping on Mr. Frary’s front door. Ten minutes later, the Vauxhall Meriva was captured on camera being driven swiftly away from the house.
After then, Mr. Frary’s cellphone was turned off, and video captured a man—possibly Dunne—walking along surrounding streets into Woodstock Gardens.
Mr. Frary’s body was discovered inside his residence the following day. Officers confirmed that the missing Vauxhall had been there since the morning of January 1 when it was discovered there on January 2.
Officers discovered a wallet containing Mr. Frary’s driver’s licence and a pair of black gloves in a street drain after searching the neighbourhood.
Additionally, Mr. Frary’s green mobile phone was found on the train lines near Ventnor Road and the intersection with Horncliffe Road.
Officers also discovered a drawstring from Dunne’s jogging trousers about 7 feet away from the phone.
Dunne’s characteristic camouflage jacket was also discovered on the rails.
When Dunne was taken into custody, he pretended to be shocked and that he had been somewhere else when Mr. Frary passed away.
He claimed Mr. Frary had driven him to a friend’s house where he had spent the night and that he was unaware of the pensioner’s manner of passing away.
Dunne, 44, was eventually charged with murder after refusing to comment when presented with the evidence.
In an effort to thwart the murder inquiry, Dunne delivered “lie after lie,” according to Det Chief Inspector Lee Wilson of the Blackpool CID.
He said: ‘Dunne’s actions were cold, calculated and wicked, he sought to lie and twist the facts repeatedly during the course of the investigation and never showed any remorse or contrition for what he had done.
‘Throughout, he thought only about himself and told lie after lie in an effort to frustrate the investigation and court process.
‘Only at the eleventh hour, with nowhere left to go with his lies, did he finally admit Mr Frary’s murder.’
Det Chief Inspector Wilson added that Dunne will now have a ‘very long time to contemplate the enormity of his actions and the upset and anxiety he has caused’.
Katie Marsden, Senior Crown Prosecutor for CPS North West said: ‘This was a tragic case, Mr Frary was described by family and friends as a gentle, kind man, his life has now been cut short by the selfish and brutal actions of Ian Dunne.
‘The Crown Prosecution Service worked with Lancashire police to build a strong case. Dunne has attempted to mislead the police and court at every turn.
‘When faced with the body of evidence including witness testimony, CCTV of his movements, cell site analysis to show where he was at the material time and forensic evidence, he abandoned his alibi and accepted his guilt.
‘I hope this conviction and sentence will give Mr Frary’s family and friends some sense of justice. My thoughts are with them at this time.’