Joel Smith (murderer)

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Joel Smith, born 1973, is a drug dealer and convicted murderer.

On 4 August 2006 he was convicted of murdering seven-year-old Toni-Ann Byfield and the man who was thought to be her father, Bertram Byfield, at a bedsit in Kensal Green, London, in September 2003 ^[1].

Toni-Ann was shot in the back by Smith after he had shot Bertram Byfield, a rival drug dealer, so that she could not identify Mr. Byfield's killer.

Smith believed that he had committed a perfect crime, leaving no DNA or forensic evidence at the scene. There was also no CCTV in the area.

Neighbours had heard four shots followed by silence.

Following the murders Smith, who was known as Cocaine or Caine, fled London to Liverpool. While serving a prison sentence here he was turned in by former friends and acquaintances who had been appalled by the murder.

Bertram Byfield had believed he was Toni-Ann's father. However, post-mortem examinations revealed he was not. He had been jailed in 1997 for dealing in crack cocaine ^[2]. Despite his criminal background Toni-Ann, who was living under the care of Birmingham Social Services, had been allowed to visit him at his bedsit in an ex-offenders' hostel.

In court, Smith had denied the murders, claiming another man had admitted being the killer to him.

After being found guilty Smith was jailed for life for both murders, with a recommendation that he should serve at least 40 years before being considered for parole. As a result, he is likely to remain in prison until at least 2045 and the age of 72. This sentence is one of the longest recommended minimum terms ever made by a judge or politician in England and Wales.