Noise feud led to neighbour's death

A man was found guilty of manslaughter and jailed for eight years yesterday after a neighbourhood feud over noise turned violent, leaving one person dead and three others injured.

Cardiff Crown Court was told that when Colin Shankland, 34, moved into a quiet residential area of the city five years ago he shattered the peace of families who had lived for more than 25 years. He would rev his car engine early in the morning, play his radio loud, shout in the street and allow his mongrel dog to run wild.

The court was told that when the neighbourhood united against him, Shankland 'flipped'. He burst into a neighbouring house armed with a 6in fishing knife and attacked Lynne Mullane, 25, and her parents. Miss Mullane was stabbed twice in the shoulder as she tried to phone for help. Her father, John, 61, was slashed across the face and her mother, Eileen, 57, suffered a 10-inch chest wound.

Shortly afterwards, another neighbour, Harry Stephenson, 51, was stabbed to death on his doorstep.

Shankland, who said he had intended to scare his neighbours, was cleared of murder but found guilty of manslaughter on the ground of diminished responsibility. He was also found guilty of two charges of wounding and one of attempted wounding.

Passing sentence, Mr Justice Curtis said: 'You used extreme violence on the deceased, breaking into his home and using a terrible knife. These were the worst cases of their kind I could possibly imagine.'