Police welcome sentence for brutal killings

Steven McBrine will spend a at least 11 years behind bars for the manslaughter of Frances Murray, 37, and Joseph Dutton, 47, at a flat in Kinnaird Close, north Belfast, on December 23.

All three were residents in separate flats in the apartment complex at the time of the attack.

Although initially charged with murder, McBrine eventually pleaded guilty to manslaughter on the grounds of diminished responsibility at Belfast Crown Court.

He was sentenced to two discretionary life sentences, with a tariff of 11 years before he can be considered for parole.

Police said the two victims were subjected to a “brutal and sustained attack” following a verbal altercation.

Following the sentencing yesterday, a detective from the PSNI’s Major Investigation Team also described the double murder as “senseless” and “cruel”.

Detective Inspector Sean Armstrong said: “The bodies of 37-year-old Frances Murray and 47-year-old Joseph Dutton were found in a flat in Kinnaird Close on the afternoon of Monday, December 23, 2019.

“All three had been together when a verbal altercation began. This escalated to a very brutal and sustained attack in which two innocent victims were stabbed multiple times.

“This was a senseless, cruel and tragic loss of two lives, leaving two families heartbroken.”

DI Armstrong added: “My thoughts today are with those families, and I know that the sentence imposed will never ease their pain and sorrow.

“We always work tirelessly to bring offenders before the courts, where they will be held to account.”

The judge read statements from the victims’ families, noting that Ms Murray’s father said the fact that she “succumbed to addiction is not what defines her, instead, she will be remembered as a caring and loving daughter, sister, cousin and niece”.