Man facing life sentence for 'abhorrent' murder of frail man in the Highlands

A man is facing a life sentence for the “abhorrent” murder of a man in the Highlands.

Michael Joyce, 33, attacked and killed Michael White at a house in Kyle of Lochalsh in April last year.

His partner and mother-of-four Antonia Gunn was acquitted of the charge on a unanimous, not proven verdict.

Other charges, including that they held Mr White, 61, in servitude and attempted to defeat the ends of justice by disposing of items worn by the victim, were withdrawn by the Crown during the trial.

The frail victim suffered an “agonising death”, after sustaining fractured ribs and internal injuries during a fatal assault on April 22 or 23.

The court heard that prior to his death, Department of Work and Pensions benefit payments into Mr White’s bank account saw money regularly transferred into Joyce’s account.

Other sums of money were withdrawn through cash points.

Mr White had also contacted friends and acquaintances seeking financial help.

Mr Prentice said there had been “a degree of control over the affairs of Mr White” with his income being redirected to the accused.

Following Mr White’s death, a post-mortem was carried out by a single pathologist, but the autopsy was halted because of concerns over a significant amount of blood found in his abdomen.

Two forensic pathologists then conducted a post-mortem and concluded that the cause of death was complications of blunt force trauma of the trunk and heart disease.

They found that he had sustained three fresh fractures to his ribs along with signs of older rib fractures. He also suffered internal injuries, including tears to his bowel and liver. He was emaciated and very, very thin.

Peritonitis had also set in which the court heard was an extremely painful experience as it develops.

Judge Lady Poole Joyce his behaviour was “despicable” and added: “Michael White’s past association with you is a tragedy for him and his family.”

The judge told Joyce that there was only one sentence for murder, life imprisonment but she continued sentence for the preparation of a background report as she will have to set a minimum term – known as a punishment part – that Joyce will have to serve before he can seek to apply for parole.

After the verdict, the jury heard that Joyce has previous convictions, including for crimes of violence and dishonesty.

Mr White’s son, 25, told the court that his parents moved to Kyle of Lochalsh from England when he was seven to run a bed and breakfast business from the Old Bank House.

His mother, Sally, later died. He said his father lost his wife and his business partner.

He was asked if his father was able to cope and said: “It was hard.”

He later moved to England but kept in touch with his father, who suffered a stroke in 2021 and had visited him.

He said that after he learnt of his father’s death, he called Gunn and Joyce before travelling to Kyle of Lochalsh.

He said Gunn told him she had come downstairs, found his father, and shouted for Joyce. Joyce told him that prior to his death, his father was “over the moon” after he had won money on a bet.

He said he travelled to Kyle of Lochalsh with his half-brother and others and went to the Old Bank House. He said, “It was a shock, overwhelming for all of us. The state of the house.”

The half-brother said of the guest house: “It looked like a war zone……It was destroyed. One or two of the rooms may have been habitable but the rest were not.”

Mr Prentice asked him how Mr White senior had coped with the earlier loss of his mother.

He replied: “He didn’t cope well but he didn’t completely fall apart. He loved my mum very much. She loved him.”

The court heard that prior to his death, Mr White seemed to do almost everything for Gunn and Joyce.

A neighbour said: “He would drive for them. He was going to the shops for them. It seemed he would do almost everything for them.”

She said she had known Mr White for some time, but before his death his appearance changed.

“I thought he had cancer. He seemed to have lost a lot of weight quickly,” she said.

During the trial, jurors were shown distressing video footage shot by Gunn featuring the half-naked, emaciated body of Mr White slumped in a shower.

Gunn told the court that Joyce assaulted Mr White, and she saw him punch the older man in the stomach with two separate blows involving “a strong amount of force”.

She said: “The two of them were arguing about Michael Joyce’s sister.”

She said the punching she witnessed was not an end to the violence directed towards Mr White, and she later heard him making noises as if he was in pain from a bedroom while she was in the living room.

She said: “I had no idea how bad this was. This has happened before and he was okay.”

She said she did not agree with what was happening but could not phone anyone as it could cause repercussions for her.

She said she had previously sustained black eyes and bruises during abuse from Joyce.

Detective Inspector Richard Baird, of Police Scotland’s Major Investigation Team, said: “Michael Joyce’s actions towards Michael White were utterly abhorrent.

“Initially following his death he attempted to present himself as a friend of Mr White, and it was only after a post mortem that it became apparent he had in fact died as a result of injuries he had inflicted.

“We welcome this conviction and, while this cannot change what happened, Joyce will now face the consequences of his actions.”

Joyce will be sentenced on December 5, 2024 at the High Court in Edinburgh.