Northumberland Captors Sentenced for Brutal Three-Day Torture Ordeal
Two men from Ashington have been handed significant prison sentences at Newcastle Crown Court after pleading guilty to false imprisonment. The court heard harrowing details of a three-day torture ordeal inflicted upon a friend over a stolen sum of £120.
A Friendship Shattered by Violence and Drugs
The victim, who had been friends with Liam McHugh for six or seven years and worked alongside him as a carpet fitter, had even moved into McHugh's flat weeks before the incident. The situation deteriorated in June last year after a gathering where drugs were consumed. While McHugh slept, the victim took £120 in cash to purchase cocaine, which he then used with another individual.
Upon waking and discovering the theft, McHugh initially demanded repayment. However, after ingesting "blue tablets," his demeanor turned violently aggressive. He threw a carpet fitting tool at the victim and forced him into the bathroom under threat of death.
Systematic Torture with Paint Stripper and Waterboarding
As the victim complied, McHugh poured paint stripper over him, covering his arm and clothing. McHugh then barricaded the bathroom door, imprisoning the man for six hours. The violence escalated when Nathan Beecroft arrived and assisted McHugh.
The pair subjected the victim to repeated waterboarding, using a soaked towel pressed against his face for 30 to 60 seconds at a time, preventing him from breathing. This occurred at least twenty times, with Beecroft interrogating him about the stolen money during the assaults. The victim described Beecroft's behavior as "weird," noting he alternated between violence and seemingly friendly acts like showing music videos.
Prosecutor Joe Culley stated the victim believed he would die during the 90-minute waterboarding session. The attackers also threatened him with bush cutters against his fingers, toes, and the bridge of his nose, and poured more paint stripper, some entering his mouth.
Further Abuse with Household Items and Restraints
The victim was then moved to the kitchen, where he believed his captors were smoking crack cocaine. He was tied up with washing line, punched, kicked, and struck over the head with a mirror, which shattered. A cheese grater was scraped against his legs, and he was hit with a metal bar.
When a suggested relative refused to pay £600 demanded by the attackers, the victim was returned to the flat, tied up again, and imprisoned. His captors shaved his hair, eyebrows, and eyelashes, poured hot tea over him, stubbed a cigarette out on his skin, and stamped on him.
Rescue and Aftermath of the Trauma
The ordeal ended when McHugh, after falling asleep, awoke and called police, claiming he could not remember his actions. Officers found the victim bound in a bedroom, smelling of petrol, with lacerations, bruises, burns, and widespread pain.
In a victim impact statement, the man expressed his disbelief and trauma, stating, "This whole incident is surreal. I can't believe this has happened to me. It's hard to think about, even now. He was my best friend, he was like a brother. He was the last person I would have expected to do that." He described fearing for his life, thinking he would never see his family again, and feeling like a "crash test dummy" as new methods of hurt were devised.
Sentencing and Legal Arguments
Liam McHugh, 26, of Osier Court, Stakeford, Ashington, was jailed for five years. Nathan Beecroft, 37, of Liddle Street, Stakeford, received a sentence of four years and nine months. Both were given ten-year restraining orders.
Defense counsel Richard Herrmann for McHugh cited remorse, his client's arrangement of the police call upon "coming around," positive character, work prospects, and young children, attributing the episode to alcohol, drugs, and mental health issues. Andrew Walker, for Beecroft, argued the crime was unplanned and driven by drink and drugs, with involvement limited to around 20 minutes.
