Two men have been jailed for their parts in an incident which led to the murder of 26-year-old musician Thomas Brittain in March.

East Anglian Daily Times: Andre Vella, 20, from Kirby Cross, was sentenced to ten years in prison for aggravated burglary.Andre Vella, 20, from Kirby Cross, was sentenced to ten years in prison for aggravated burglary. (Image: Archant)

Jack Hummerstone, 18, of no fixed address was found guilty of the murder of Thomas Brittain as well as GBH with intent following a three-week trial in September.

He was sentenced at Chelmsford Crown Court today, Tuesday, October 8, to life in prison to serve a minimum of 26 years.

He was also sentenced to five years to run concurrently for the GBH with intent as well as six years for possession of an imitation firearm with intent to commit a criminal offence and ten years for aggravated burglary, to also run concurrently. He had previously admitted those offences.

Andre Vella, now 20, from Kirby Cross, was sentenced to ten years in prison for aggravated burglary; a charge he was found guilty of following the trial.

He was also sentenced to six years to run concurrently for possession of an imitation firearm with intent to commit a criminal offence; a charged he admitted.

Tom Brittain, aged 26 was at a friend’s flat in Parkside Quarter, Colchester when in the early hours of Saturday, March 9, this year two men broke into the property brandishing a knife and a handgun. Mr Brittain was assaulted and stabbed. The other people inside the flat managed to escape by locking themselves in another room but not before one man had been cut on the hand.

These people called the emergency services and on police arrival paramedics tried to save Mr Brittain’s life. Sadly he died at the scene. The provisional post-mortem examination result showed that he died from a fatal stab wound to the chest.

Detectives from the Kent & Essex Serious Crime Directorate launched a murder enquiry and within a short period of time they were able to identify two men they wanted to arrest. They took the unusual step of naming Vella and Hummerstone as wanted because they were considered dangerous.

Vella was arrested a few days later and Hummerstone was tracked down to an address in London where he was arrested in April.