Devon public schoolboy who claimed he was sleepwalking during hammer attack on pupils and teacher is sentenced

A public schoolboy who claimed he was sleepwalking when he tried to murder two students and a teacher in a claw hammer attack has been detained for life with a minimum term of 12 years.

The 17-year-old, who cannot be named for legal reasons, was dressed only in his boxer shorts when he repeatedly hit his dormmates as they slept in one of the boarding houses at Blundell's School in Tiverton, Devon, in June last year.

Giving evidence during his trial, the boy said he kept two hammers by his bed "for protection" from a "zombie apocalypse".

He claimed during his trial that he was sleepwalking when he struck the boys, but police said after sentencing that the attack was "months in the planning".

The teenager, who was 16 at the time of the attack, was armed with three claw hammers and had waited for the two boys to fall asleep before climbing up into their cabin-style beds and hitting them shortly before 1am, the court heard.

Both boys suffered skull fractures, as well as injuries to their ribs, spleen, a punctured lung and internal bleeding.

A prosecutor said the pair were "lucky to still be alive".

Maths teacher Henry Roffe-Silvester was asleep in his own quarters when he was awoken by noises coming from the boarding house and went to investigate.

He told a jury he saw a silhouetted figure standing in front of him in the room, who then turned and hit him six times over the head with a hammer.

Another student heard Mr Roffe-Silvester shouting and swearing as he fled the bedroom and dialled 999 - believing there was an intruder.

The two boys were discovered in their beds a few minutes later.

Both are living with the "long-term consequences" of the attack but have no memory of it, Exeter Crown Court heard.

The defendant's claim he was sleepwalking meant that he hoped to be found not guilty of three counts of attempted murder by reason of insanity.

However, he was found guilty of all three charges in June following a 10-week trial and was sentenced on Friday.

During the trial, James Dawes KC, prosecuting, told jurors: "The investigation has uncovered an obsession that the defendant had with one of the boys, an obsession with hammers as weapons, and an obsession with killing and killers and the killing of children.

"He had motive, that he had planned something like this, thought about it in advance, and he was awake.

"He was using his iPad right up to the moment before the attack.

"Mr Roffe-Silvester said he thought the defendant appeared to be 'on a mission' and afterwards his face and body relaxed, and he was calm and slumped on his feet, squatting against the wall."

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One expert told the jury the boy would have been sleepwalking.

Dr Mark Pressman went on to describe the attack on Mr Roffe-Silvester as "a textbook example of sleepwalking violence" and said there were no features in the case inconsistent with sleepwalking.

Relatives of the defendant also told the court about a history of sleepwalking in their family.

Another expert, Dr John O'Reilly, said he did not believe the boy was asleep because a sleepwalker does not initiate violence because it is triggered by noise or touch.

During his trial, the boy said: "I feel very terribly sorry for all three individuals because of what I did to them.

"I feel very sorry for everyone, the families and themselves."

Speaking after the sentencing, Detective Inspector Dave Egan said: "This was an unprovoked attack on two schoolboys as they slept in their beds. The assaults were both brutal and savage and I have no doubt that his intent was to kill.

"Our detectives worked tirelessly to prove that the offender had indeed been fully conscious when committing this horrendous attack, which had been months in the planning."

The family of one of the teenagers said: "We would like to take this opportunity to thank all those who have assisted in our son's recovery - from the school community to the paramedics and the doctors and surgeons who gave outstanding care whilst he was in hospital. We are eternally grateful for your interventions."

A relative of the other boy said: "I am looking forward to my family moving on now that the trial is over, and I hope my son will continue his recovery and have a good future ahead."

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