BREAKING NEWS: Man found guilty of killing friend

Michael Wayne Carroll - known as Wayne - bludgeoned Alexander Blick to death in Matlock’s library gardens.

Carroll, 44 of Upper Greenhill Gardens, Matlock, sat motionless as the jury at Nottingham Crown Court found him guilty of manslaughter.

Caroline Bradley, prosecuting said Carroll suffered from mental health problems but had deliberately tried to evade responsibility for the crime by getting rid of some evidence.

She added the killing was a “significant and brutal attack on a man who was not defending himself” and added Carroll’s story “defied simple, ordinary common sense.”

During the seven-day hearing the court heard that the pair were part of a group of “down and outs” in the town who spent their time drinking alcohol and taking drugs in Hall Leys Park.

But a day-long drinking session ended in tragedy and Mr Blick’s body was discovered on Sunday, October 16 2011, in the gardens off Steep Turnpike.

He had suffered serious head injuries after being hit with a large rock which weighed 35 kilograms.

After his friend’s death, blood-splattered shoes were discovered at Carroll’s flat- along with blood-stained clothing, hidden in bushes close by.

The court also heard that Carroll later confessed the killing to two friends saying he had “hit him twice on the head and once in the windpipe.”

Carroll, who had lived in Matlock for around 12 years, claims the killer entered his flat, took his clothes and trainers.

Mr Blick, 42, of Dale Road, Matlock Bath, was originally from Plymouth. He moved to Matlock three months before his death.

Senior investigating officer detective superintendent Andy Stokes said: “We don’t know why Carroll launched this particularly nasty attack on his friend and we may never know.

“I hope this conviction brings some form of closure for Mr Blick’s friends and family, who have waited 18 months for justice.”

Adjourning the case for sentencing next week, Judge Michael Stokes said the first thing he would consider was protection of the public and whether to send Carroll to a secure hospital.