Murderer severed man's arm after Birmingham dumbbell attack

Image source, West Midlands Police

Image caption, David Swaby claimed he had been defending himself, but offered no consistent version of events around what happened, police said

A murderer has been jailed for "ferociously" attacking a man with a rolling pin and dumbbell before trying to dismember the body in a bath.

Hassan Ghafar, 22, suffered dozens of injuries during the attack at a property in Birmingham on 7 February.

The accused, David Joel Swaby, 34, said he had been defending himself and denied murder.

But he was convicted and at Birmingham Crown Court was handed a life sentence with a minimum term of 21 years.

The men knew each other "in the context of either buying or selling cannabis", Judge Paul Farrer QC said on Thursday, but there was "no direct evidence as to what precipitated this offence".

Mr Ghafar was attacked in a number of rooms at Swaby's house on Holly Road in the Handsworth area of the city. The court heard the victim "managed to retreat into the toilet and sought to close the door" before he was killed.

"Having killed Mr Ghafar, you set about trying to cover your tracks," Mr Farrer told Swaby.

Swaby dragged the body into the bathroom and began to dismember it, severing the left arm at the elbow and cutting through the left leg, but appeared to have given up "no doubt because of the difficulty involved," Mr Farrer said.

Image caption, Hassan Ghafar was attacked in several rooms of the property in Handsworth, the court heard

Swaby, who was convicted last month, had inflicted more than 50 sharp force injuries and 40 blunt force injuries.

Police caught Swaby fleeing from a rear window when they arrived about 09:00 GMT the following day.

A number of items containing the blood of Mr Ghafar, including knives, scissors, poles, a rolling pin and a dumbbell, were recovered.

Swaby also admitted in court making Mr Ghafar beg before killing him.

Mr Farrer described Swaby, who suffered no injuries, as a dangerous man, adding: "The injuries sustained by Hassan Ghafar, together with the blood staining in the house, demonstrate that you launched a sustained and ferocious attack upon him."

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