A man from Portslade was jailed for four years today (Monday 13 March) for helping a killer to hide a dead body.
Stewart Robertson, 51, of St Aubyns Road, Portslade, was sentenced at Lewes Crown Court alongside Worthing garage owner Colin Gale, 40, who killed bomb disposal expert Mark Manning in a row about money.
Gale was found guilty of manslaughter last month after a four-week trial in which he said that he killed 54-year-old Mr Manning in self-defence at P&B Motors, also known as Western Road Car Sales, in Western Road, Lancing.
Afterwards he enlisted Robertson’s help and they dumped Mr Manning’s body in thick undergrowth near the Sussex village of Slaugham, close to Handcross Hill.
Mr Manning was reported missing but detectives soon realised that he had come to harm. It took two years before his body was found.
Robertson was charged last May that, without lawful excuse, he prevented the lawful and decent burial of the dead body of Mark Manning.
The pair were sentenced today by Judge Shani Barnes, the honorary recorder of Brighton and Hove.
Robertson is likely to be free next year to serve the rest of his sentence on licence, having spent almost a year in custody awaiting trial, in part for his own protection. Magistrates were also concerned that he might abscond.
Gale was jailed for 15 years and 8 months. Judge Barnes told him: “You killed Mark Manning in a short momentary act of violence when you lost control.
“But you regained your composure enough to cover up what you had done by calling upon Stewart Robertson, who relied on you, to help you dispose of Mark’s body, get rid of the weapon and the mobile phones and then lie to Mark’s family about his whereabouts and misdirect the police.
“I would like to commend the Sussex Police investigation team for their hard work in what was a difficult and complex case.
“They conducted themselves in a professional and exemplary manner including the way they dealt with Robertson and gained his trust so that he could show them where Mark’s body was.”
