A trio of men have been handed life sentences for the brutal killing of 60-year-old Barry Dawson, who was shot through the front window of his Stanley home on 5 April. The fatal attack unfolded at his terraced property, where Dawson had lived for more than two decades and was considered a valued neighbour.
After a trial at Teesside Crown Court, 30-year-old Sean Reay, of Sabin Terrace, Stanley, was found guilty of Dawson’s murder. He was convicted alongside accomplices Kelvin Lawson, 38, and Thomas Sterling, 22. Reay, who fired the fatal shot, received a minimum term of 32 years.
Lawson, of Frosterley Gardens, Stanley, who smashed the downstairs window to give Reay a clear line of fire, was jailed for life with a minimum term of 28 years. Sterling, of The Avenue, Stanley, was sentenced to life with a minimum term of 26 years.
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The judge told the court Sterling had taken part in a “show of strength” in the street that afternoon.
A CPS spokesman said, “The shot struck Barry in the chest, puncturing his heart, lung and liver, and he was tragically pronounced dead at the scene a short time later. Following the shooting, Sean Reay fled the Durham area and was later arrested in Northern Ireland.”
Doorbell footage captured the horrifying moment of the shooting and the anguished cries of Dawson’s son, Shane, shouting, “They shot my dad.”
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Mr Justice Cotter described the killing as “an extraordinary crime in an ordinary residential street,” adding: “It was the sort of thing most people only see in television or films, and then not in this country.”
The court heard that Reay was seeking revenge after an earlier dispute outside his property, believed to be drug-related. He claimed a man had threatened to burn down his home. Reay’s group wrongly believed the individual was inside Dawson’s house. They attempted to lure him out by smashing windows.
Dawson, who had been resting upstairs and had no involvement in the earlier incident, came downstairs to investigate the commotion before being fatally shot. The judge said Reay acted as leader, with Lawson and Sterling operating as “key lieutenants”.
He also said the trio lived by a code that treated police as the enemy, telling them: “You can reflect on where your code has got you during your decades in prison. Until you reject the code, you will not be safe to rejoin society.”
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Reay recruited driver Kevin Dorward, 38, and his cousin Keith Dorward, 48, to transport the group to the shooting.
Both were acquitted of murder but admitted attempting to pervert the course of justice by trying to burn out the getaway car. Dorward’s partner, Michaela Hetherington, also admitted the same offence after falsely reporting the vehicle stolen.
Kevin Dorward was jailed for 20 months, Keith Dorward for 16 months, and Hetherington for 15 months. Having already served 246 days on remand, Hetherington will be released immediately.
Detective Chief Inspector Neil Fuller, Senior Investigating Officer for Operation Hamnett, said, “I hope this investigation sends out a clear message to criminals that we will not allow such extreme violence on our streets.
“There is no place for guns on our streets, and we take a zero-tolerance approach in tackling and bringing to justice those who choose to carry such weapons. Barry Dawson needlessly lost his life that afternoon because of the despicable actions of these three men. My thoughts remain with those who loved him.”
In a victim impact statement, Dawson’s partner, Sarah Hopwood, described him as an “adored father and grandfather,” adding, “This horrendous crime has broken our hearts, and it is something we will never recover from.”
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