Farmer jailed for lodger's 'body in barrel' murder
A 73-year-old farmer has been sentenced to 35 years in prison for the murder of his lodger, whose remains were discovered in a concrete-filled barrel six years after he went missing. The court heard the motive involved a dispute over a stolen firearm found on the farm.
Why it matters
This case highlights a high-profile criminal investigation involving long-term concealment of a crime and illegal firearms possession.
Image source, South Yorkshire Police Image caption, Christopher Wright has been jailed for 35 years
A farmer who shot his lodger and dismembered his body has been jailed for 35 years.
Richard Dyson, 55, disappeared in November 2019, but his remains, kept inside a concrete-filled barrel in a trailer on a farm near Barnsley, were not discovered for nearly six years.
A trial at Sheffield Crown Court heard how Christopher Wright killed Dyson when he tried to steal a gun from him before disposing of the body with the help of his childhood friend Karl Schwalbe.
Last month, Wright, 73, was convicted of murder and Schwalbe, 72, was found guilty of perverting the course of justice.
Wright, a former butcher, was also found guilty of conspiracy to pervert the justice, preventing a lawful burial and six firearms offences.
Schwalbe was jailed for three years for perverting the course of justice.
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