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| Tony Martin, who killed burglar at farmhouse, dies | Tony Martin, who killed burglar at farmhouse, dies |
| (32 minutes later) | |
| Tony Martin's murder conviction for killing Fred Barras at his farmhouse was later reduced to manslaughter | |
| Convicted killer Tony Martin, who shot dead a teenage intruder in his home in 1999, has died at the age of 80, a family friend has said. | Convicted killer Tony Martin, who shot dead a teenage intruder in his home in 1999, has died at the age of 80, a family friend has said. |
| The killing of 16-year-old Fred Barras at Martin's Norfolk farmhouse was hugely controversial at the time, with the country divided over whether his actions were pre-meditated, or simply a farmer defending himself and his property. | The killing of 16-year-old Fred Barras at Martin's Norfolk farmhouse was hugely controversial at the time, with the country divided over whether his actions were pre-meditated, or simply a farmer defending himself and his property. |
| Martin was jailed in 2000 for the boy's murder, and for injuring another man, 29-year-old Brendan Fearon in the same incident, before being released three years later after the murder conviction was reduced to manslaughter. | Martin was jailed in 2000 for the boy's murder, and for injuring another man, 29-year-old Brendan Fearon in the same incident, before being released three years later after the murder conviction was reduced to manslaughter. |
| His friend, Malcolm Starr, said Martin died on Sunday afternoon shortly before 15:00 GMT after suffering a stroke a few months ago. | His friend, Malcolm Starr, said Martin died on Sunday afternoon shortly before 15:00 GMT after suffering a stroke a few months ago. |
| He was surrounded by close friends when he died at Wisbech Hospital in Cambridgeshire, Mr Starr said. | He was surrounded by close friends when he died at Wisbech Hospital in Cambridgeshire, Mr Starr said. |
| Martin lived on his own at his sprawling, semi-derelict farmhouse in Emneth Hungate, near Wisbech on the Norfolk/Cambridgeshire border at the time of the incident. | Martin lived on his own at his sprawling, semi-derelict farmhouse in Emneth Hungate, near Wisbech on the Norfolk/Cambridgeshire border at the time of the incident. |
| On the night of 20 August 1999, the pair entered his home, in an isolated part of the village, with the intention of burglary. | On the night of 20 August 1999, the pair entered his home, in an isolated part of the village, with the intention of burglary. |
| They had travelled from Newark in Nottinghamshire that evening to raid the property, called Bleak House, where Martin stored antiques. | They had travelled from Newark in Nottinghamshire that evening to raid the property, called Bleak House, where Martin stored antiques. |
| The farmer heard them, came down from an upstairs bedroom and opened fire with a pump-action shotgun. | The farmer heard them, came down from an upstairs bedroom and opened fire with a pump-action shotgun. |
| Fred Barras was aged 16 when he died after breaking into Martin's farmhouse | Fred Barras was aged 16 when he died after breaking into Martin's farmhouse |
| Fred died at the farm while Fearon was treated in hospital for his injuries. | Fred died at the farm while Fearon was treated in hospital for his injuries. |
| Martin was arrested and charged with murdering the boy. | Martin was arrested and charged with murdering the boy. |
| A police photo showed the stairs in Bleak House from which Martin shot Fred Barras and Brendon Fearon | A police photo showed the stairs in Bleak House from which Martin shot Fred Barras and Brendon Fearon |
| Tony Martin was convicted of murdering the teenage intruder in 2000 | Tony Martin was convicted of murdering the teenage intruder in 2000 |
| At his trial, Martin claimed to have been acting in self-defence while prosecutors argued he had anticipated the pair and lay in wait for them. | At his trial, Martin claimed to have been acting in self-defence while prosecutors argued he had anticipated the pair and lay in wait for them. |
| The case attracted huge public attention, with Martin's supporters casting him as a man taking a stand to defend his home and others seeing him as a violent eccentric who turned vigilante. | The case attracted huge public attention, with Martin's supporters casting him as a man taking a stand to defend his home and others seeing him as a violent eccentric who turned vigilante. |
| Police officers pictured guarding the scene of the shooting at Martin's farmhouse in August 1999 | Police officers pictured guarding the scene of the shooting at Martin's farmhouse in August 1999 |
| Martin was convicted of murder and jailed for life in April 2000, with 10 years to run concurrently for a wounding offence and a further 12 months for possession of an illegal firearm. | Martin was convicted of murder and jailed for life in April 2000, with 10 years to run concurrently for a wounding offence and a further 12 months for possession of an illegal firearm. |
| The charge was later downgraded to manslaughter on grounds of diminished responsibility after a diagnosis of paranoid personality disorder, and he was released in 2003. | The charge was later downgraded to manslaughter on grounds of diminished responsibility after a diagnosis of paranoid personality disorder, and he was released in 2003. |
| Martin, pictured in October 2001, served three years in prison | Martin, pictured in October 2001, served three years in prison |
| Mr Starr, who first came to know Martin shortly before the Bleak House incident, said: "He turned up one day at my office in Wisbech, in a tractor, to talk about the closure of a police station. Not many people turn up in tractors. | Mr Starr, who first came to know Martin shortly before the Bleak House incident, said: "He turned up one day at my office in Wisbech, in a tractor, to talk about the closure of a police station. Not many people turn up in tractors. |
| "I thought he was a bit of an oddball, but it was an interesting meeting." | "I thought he was a bit of an oddball, but it was an interesting meeting." |
| The pair kept in touch throughout the incident, the trial and beyond. | The pair kept in touch throughout the incident, the trial and beyond. |
| "If [Tony] had said sorry, he'd have been released sooner," he added. | "If [Tony] had said sorry, he'd have been released sooner," he added. |
| "But he refused and that's what kept him in prison. He couldn't lie - that's my opinion." | "But he refused and that's what kept him in prison. He couldn't lie - that's my opinion." |
| Mr Starr, now 74, said it was important that people should see both sides of Martin. | Mr Starr, now 74, said it was important that people should see both sides of Martin. |
| "I found him very honest," he said. | "I found him very honest," he said. |
| "He couldn't lie despite what some believed, and I think many police officers at the time thought the same. He was quite a character and deserves some good words." | "He couldn't lie despite what some believed, and I think many police officers at the time thought the same. He was quite a character and deserves some good words." |
| Following his release from prison, Mr Starr said that Martin became "quite depressed" and lived in cars, a barn and a rented house before his health declined. | Following his release from prison, Mr Starr said that Martin became "quite depressed" and lived in cars, a barn and a rented house before his health declined. |
| Bleak House, he said, while already considered in a bad state of repair in 2000, was now "shuttered up and rotting away even more". | Bleak House, he said, while already considered in a bad state of repair in 2000, was now "shuttered up and rotting away even more". |
| "It will no doubt soon collapse," Mr Starr added. | "It will no doubt soon collapse," Mr Starr added. |
| Martin hit the headlines several times after his release from jail, including in 2013 when he said two men tried to steal a pair of £90 batteries from his barn. | |
| In the same year, the Crime & Courts Act, external gave people a "householder's defence" if they used "reasonable" force against an intruder that was not "grossly disproportionate" - a change in the law that was influenced by the Tony Martin trial and other similar cases. | |
| Brendon Fearon was wounded in the legs by Martin | |
| Martin always maintained he had acted in self-defence. | |
| Speaking to the BBC in 2019, some 20 years after the incident, Martin said: "I've always said when people get into exceptional circumstances which are beyond the norm, the law should leave you alone. | |
| "You should be protected in law against these things." | |
| A cordon was in place near Martin's home following the shooting in 1999 |