Paul Thrower death: Three teens jailed Published duration 19 December 2014

image copyright Josephine McDermott image caption Kiro Halliburton, Zakariya Subeir and Mahdi Osman (l-r), had shouted abuse and spat at the victim's girlfriend

Three teenagers have been jailed for a "wicked and unnecessary" axe and knife attack on a drunk man.

Handyman Paul Thrower died after two 18-year-olds hit him with a 4ft (1.2m) long axe and stabbed him 10 times in the back on a west London estate.

Zakariya Subeir and Kiro Halliburton said they acted in self defence when Mr Thrower smashed a glass partition they were hiding behind.

He was chasing them after being angered by their treatment of his girlfriend.

The attack happened near his home in St Dunstan's Close, Hayes, on 20 February.

image copyright Metropolitan Police image caption Paul Thrower 'being bullied' on the estate

The court heard the victim had been drinking and became very angry when his girlfriend Geraldine Roberts told him the youths swore, spat and threw a drink at her earlier that day.

Halliburton and Subeir shut themselves in a bin chute when Mr Thrower, 46, chased them.

They were handed an axe in a shed and Mahdi Osman, also 18, passed it to Subeir. Osman said he handed it to them so they could protect themselves rather than attack Mr Thrower.

When Mr Thrower broke the glass partition, Subeir hit him twice on the head and once on the shoulder with the axe while Halliburton stabbed him repeatedly in the back with a knife before delivering the fatal wound to the heart.

Following a trial at the Old Bailey, Halliburton, of Tollgate Drive, Hayes, was found guilty of murder and jailed for a minimum of 16 years.

Subeir, from Rockingham Road, Uxbridge, and Osman from Hoskins Close, Hayes, were found not guilty of murder but convicted of manslaughter.

Subeir was sentenced to eight years in a young offenders' institution with an extended licence period of a further four years, and Osman to five-and-a-half years for his lesser role.

A 17-year-old, who cannot be named for legal reasons, was cleared of involvement in the killing.

'Resort of a coward'

Judge John Bevan told Halliburton that he accepted Mr Thrower's behaviour was outlandish, and "inflammatory, drunken and pathetic" but he was provoked by the three of them.

"This was a wicked and unnecessary crime - a ranting, inebriate being no match for a knife and axe being wielded by young and fit teenagers."

"The carrying of knives has become endemic among some teenagers in parts of London and it is assumed to aid power and respect to the carrier. That is a delusion. It is the resort of a coward.

"You are a dangerous young man, aggressive when carrying a knife and lacked the courage to tell anything like the truth about this."

The court heard that Halliburton had two previous convictions for possessing a knife or bladed weapon in 2012.

Mr Thrower's sister Dawn said in a victim impact statement that the father of one was "being bullied and victimised and he was doing his best and it got on top of him".

Investigating officer Det Insp Simon Deefholts said: "I am pleased the jury have today convicted not only the two directly involved in the shocking attack on Mr Thrower but also the youth who helped arm them."