This article is from the source 'bbc' and was first published or seen on . It last changed over 40 days ago and won't be checked again for changes.

You can find the current article at its original source at http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-tyne-33286051

The article has changed 2 times. There is an RSS feed of changes available.

Version 0 Version 1
Martin Ruddy jailed for 35 years for killing parents Martin Ruddy jailed for 35 years for killing parents
(34 minutes later)
A man who bludgeoned his father to death and strangled his mother must spend at least 35 years in jail, a judge has said.A man who bludgeoned his father to death and strangled his mother must spend at least 35 years in jail, a judge has said.
Eric Ruddy, 64, and his wife Carol, 54, were found dying at their Newcastle home in December.Eric Ruddy, 64, and his wife Carol, 54, were found dying at their Newcastle home in December.
Debt-ridden Martin Ruddy, 29, claimed the pair had been attacked by intruders and that he had also been injured.Debt-ridden Martin Ruddy, 29, claimed the pair had been attacked by intruders and that he had also been injured.
Judge Paul Sloan QC said Ruddy would serve two life terms, describing his actions as "despicable and ruthless".Judge Paul Sloan QC said Ruddy would serve two life terms, describing his actions as "despicable and ruthless".
Earlier, Newcastle Crown Court heard that in the lead-up to the murders, Ruddy's life was running out of control and that his marriage was at breaking point.Earlier, Newcastle Crown Court heard that in the lead-up to the murders, Ruddy's life was running out of control and that his marriage was at breaking point.
He was the sole beneficiary of his parents' will and stood to inherit their savings of more than £80,000 He was the sole beneficiary of his parents' will and stood to inherit their savings of more than £80,000.
The court heard Eric Ruddy had received a number of blunt-force traumas to the back of his head and Carol Ruddy was strangled with a length of TV cable.The court heard Eric Ruddy had received a number of blunt-force traumas to the back of his head and Carol Ruddy was strangled with a length of TV cable.
Following the attack the couple were taken to the city's Royal Victoria Infirmary, but were later pronounced dead. The jury was told how the couple had been drugged before the attack and how Ruddy, from South Tyneside, then set about making it look like a break-in.
The pair were taken to the city's Royal Victoria Infirmary, but were later pronounced dead.
Judge Sloan told Ruddy: "It's clear your actions have had and will continue to have a devastating impact."
He described how Ruddy had tried to spin a "web of deceit" around the killings and "that is the fiction you have clung to from first to last".
He said Ruddy used a serrated knife to cut his father's face to make it look like he had been attacked and then, when he caught his disabled mother dialling the emergency services, he strangled her with a TV cable.
A statement from Doreen Nichol, Eric Ruddy's sister, was read out in court in which she said the couple's deaths had "torn our family apart".
She said: "I cannot believe our nephew would do this to his mother and father," and added that the horrible way in which they died had made it "10 times worse".
She said that it was hard to come to terms with their deaths, knowing they would never be able to see or speak to them again, and that "this is a situation that will never be reconciled".
Peter Carter QC, defending, said any mitigation was "obliterated" by the circumstances of the case.
He said Ruddy had no history of violence and "given his former relationship of care towards his parents" he would have a long time "to suffer serious remorse".
Det Ch Insp Andy Fairlamb, of Northumbria Police, said: "This has been an incredibly difficult time for the family of Eric and Carol Ruddy, who must now come to terms with what has happened, and they continue to have our utmost sympathies at this difficult time."