Thorpe St Andrew man who killed neighbour jailed for life
Jamie Crosbie has been ordered to serve a minimum sentence of 28 years in prison
Last updated 21st Sep 2022
A man who stabbed his neighbour to death in a “cold-blooded attack” in Thorpe St Andrew has been sentenced to life imprisonment.
Jamie Crosbie, 48, was sentenced at Norwich Crown Court today (Wednesday 21 September 2022) after he was convicted of murdering 41-year-old Dean Allsop following a three-week trial over July and August. He was ordered to serve a minimum of 28 years.
The court heard the father-of-three was stabbed multiple times by Crosbie who had got angry about noise coming from Dean’s son’s motorbike.
The argument on 14 April 2021 escalated further when Crosbie armed himself with a knife and a saw, at which point Dean called the police and said his neighbour was threatening him with a knife and that he was scared.
While still on the phone to police, Dean was attacked by Crosbie and stabbed multiple times. Crosbie then tried to attack Dean’s son, who retaliated, leaving Crosbie with injuries to his head and hand. Dean’s son returned home again and raised the alarm with his mum.
Crosbie went back to his home, returning a few minutes later to the scene where Dean had collapsed, lying face-down and motionless on the ground. Crosbie stabbed Dean again in the back before turning on his partner and another neighbour who had come out to help.
Dean’s partner, aged in her 40s, was stabbed in the chest and suffered a deep cut to her head while another neighbour, a woman in her 50s, suffered a serious stab wound to the neck.
Officers arrived at the scene in Primrose Crescent seven minutes after the 999 call was made with first responders describing it as “carnage” with people screaming, injured, and covered in blood.
Despite receiving treatment Dean was pronounced dead at the scene and a Home Office post-mortem examination established he’d died from a stab wound to the chest.
Crosbie was arrested at the scene, initially on suspicion of assault and then later for murder and after being cautioned told officers “That’s a good thing, I’m very happy about that, killing people isn’t always a bad thing”.
Crosbie was questioned after receiving treatment for his injuries and later faced charges of murder and two counts of attempted murder, which he denied. He had pleaded guilty to the lesser offence of manslaughter by diminished responsibility, which the prosecution did not accept. Crosbie was found not guilty of the two counts of attempted murder but found guilty of wounding with intent when the jury returned their verdicts on Thursday 4 August.
The court heard Crosbie and Dean had been involved in a previous dispute in June 2018, after Dean some rubbish in Crosbie’s bin. This caused a verbal argument between the pair and led to Crosbie throwing a hammer at Dean’s house. During this incident, Crosbie also armed himself with a knife and a saw. The incident was investigated at the time and Crosbie was convicted of weapons and criminal damage offences and given a suspended prison sentence.
Senior investigating officer Detective Chief Inspector Phill Gray, from the Norfolk and Suffolk Major Investigation Team, welcomed the sentence.
He said: “Crosbie is an extremely violent man and that night he was intent on causing harm to others. He isn’t safe to be in society which is why we welcomed jury’s verdict and today’s sentencing.
“This was a cold-blooded attack which left a scene of carnage for those first responders arriving on scene. After killing Dean, Crosbie went on to attack his partner and another neighbour who had simply come to his aid.
“Our thoughts remain with Dean’s family and friends who continue to grieve his loss. While today’s sentencing doesn’t bring Dean back, it offers a degree of comfort to his family and friends that the man responsible is behind bars where he can’t hurt anyone else.”
In a victim personal statement, read out to the court, Dean’s partner Louise Newell said the shock of losing him would never go away.
“It’s so hard to explain the true impact this has had on the family…we’re broken. It’s true when they say physical scars heal but those memories which scarred my mind of Dean’s last moment will haunt me for the rest of my life. There’s not one day when I don’t wake up and think about it straight away. I’ll never forgive Crosbie for what he’s done to my family. He’s taken the biggest and best part of it away from us all. I have got the best family in the world. They have all given me and the kids so much support, I can’t thank them enough and I want them to know how much I appreciate them. I’ll never ever take family and friends for granted.”