Life sentence for murderer who killed man last summer
There is 1 related update to this story
A man has received a life sentence for the murder of Tomasz Stankiewicz last summer.
Jegir Asaad, 24, killed the 39-year-old with a knife in Filton Avenue, Horfield, during an altercation in the early hours of Wednesday 21 August.
He was convicted of murder on Friday 28 February. During that two-week trial, the jury was told Asaad had been at his home address in Filton Avenue with a man and two women.
Mr Stankiewicz picked up one of the women and went back to Filton Avenue to collect the second woman a few hours later. The jury was told he had taken a wrench out of his car and an altercation ensued.
Mr Stankiewicz, after being wounded, got back into his car and drove a short distance before having to stop due to his injuries. He later died in hospital.
Dashcam footage, captured on a passing taxi, showed Asaad with a knife that was later recovered by detectives and forensic evidence linked it to the murder.
He claimed to be acting in self-defence, but the prosecution argued that the act of grabbing a knife, then attacking Mr Stankiewicz, went far beyond that.
Asaad was told at Bristol Crown Court yesterday (Thursday 6 March) that he will serve a minimum of 23 years in prison as part of his life sentence before he can be considered for parole.
A second man, 29, who had been in the property with Asaad that night, was found not guilty of murder.
‘My heart has been torn to little pieces’
Tomasz’ mother prepared a statement for the court in which she explained the impact his death continues to have on the family.
She said: “We would like to express the horrible pain and void that we have had in our hearts since the moment my son Tomasz was so brutally taken away from us in the most inhumane way.
“For us, every minute of this case is a reminder that the life of our family has been changed forever.
“We are left with the feeling of void and incomprehensible shock and pain.
“Tomasz has been taken away from us, someone who was not only a son, a brother, but also a father to two little girls.
“My grandchildren have lost their daddy – and there won’t be a single day in their lives when they will not have to cope with the fact that they will never see him again. They will never again be able to spend time together.
“As a mother, I have lost a part of me. My heart has been torn to little pieces and there are simply no words that could describe how much I miss my only son.
“How much I would like to hear his voice saying: ‘I love you, mum’, how much I long to be able to feel him next to me again.
“It does not matter how old my son was when his life was taken away from him. For a mother a child always remains her child, regardless of their age.”
She continued: “The murder that took place, means not just taking someone’s life physically. It also means taking away dreams, hope, and future.
“It also means taking away the happiness that was ahead of my son, the father of my grandchildren. It means destruction of all our family, a family whose life has been changed forever. And there is nothing that could take away this pain, nothing that could bring back what has been so brutally taken away from us.
“We will never be able to get back what we have lost. Nothing will ever be the same. We can’t go back in time to undo what has happened. Now we just have to carry on living, suffering this enormous pain, and the void in our hearts will remain with us forever.”
Tackling knife crime
Senior Investigating Officer, DI Neil Meade, said: “It is impossible to fully explain the pain that Tomasz Stankiewicz’ family have experienced – and continue to feel – since his death in August.
“No sentence can sadly bring him back to them and while the legal proceedings may have concluded today, their grief does not.”
DI Meade added: “This incident shows the fatal consequences that picking up or carrying a knife can cause.
“A lot of collaborative work is taking place to tackle knife crime, involving police, local authorities, charities and other organisations, and positive results from that are already being seen.
“The simple truth is that when someone has a knife with them in an altercation, the risk of serious injury or a fatality is massively increased. Quite simply, no good can come from possessing a knife; it puts that person and others in much greater danger.
“Jegir Asaad made a conscious decision to grab a knife that day. It’s a decision that has cost Tomasz his life, its cost a family to lose their much-loved son, and its cost Asaad his freedom.”