A father of four has been sentenced to nine years for causing the death of Coleraine pensioner Bertie Acheson.
Mr Acheson, who would have turned 75 today, died after he confronted Paul Toland in the kitchen of his Glenmore Gardens home in the early hours of April 30th, 2012.
Toland, formerly of The Cedars in Antrim, was told he will serve four and a half years in custody – the greatest period the law allowed Mr Justice Weir to impose – with a further four and a half years spent on supervised licence when he is released from prison. Toland pleaded guilty to the manslaughter of Mr Acheson, and also of robbing £335 cash from Sheila Acheson.
Passing sentence, Mr Justice Weir spoke of the devastating consequences Mr Acheson’s death has had on his family, particularly his widow Shiela, who has not been able to return to the home she shared with her husband.
Telling Toland that his actions had resulted in Mrs Acheson losing her lifelong partner and companion, Mr Justice Weir said it was clear the Antrim man had preyed on his victim in a pre-planned robbery.
Belfast Crown Court heard that at the time of the offence Toland had been working for a company which sold and repaired vacuum cleaners. In his line of work, Toland had visited the Achesons on March 19th, 2012, and during that visit Toland became aware that Mr Acheson kept money on top of a kitchen cupboard.
Telling the court, Toland found the chance to help himself to this money “too great to resist”, Mr Justice Weir said Toland and a second person drove his work van from his home in Antrim to the Acheson house, which he proceeded to break in to by smashing a bedroom window.
The smashing glass woke Sheila Acheson from her sleep, and when her husband got out of bed to investigate, he was confronted by Toland.
Ms Acheson, who was 70 at the time and who was described in court as a woman suffering from limited mobility and arthritis, remained in the bedroom where she heard the intruder ask her husband for money.
Mr Acheson responded by telling Toland “I will give you the keys to the car. Take what you like and go.”
A struggle between the two men ensued in the kitchen, during which the pensioner was grabbed or choked around the neck, was punched in the face and was left on the ground, out of breath.
Toland then entered the couple’s bedroom, and told Ms Acheson “I want money. I want money. If I don’t get money I will kill your husband.”
Using a walking stick to get out of bed, Ms Acheson lifted her purse out of her bag, which Toland grabbed before fleeing. The purse contained a total of £335 in cash.
After the intruder left, Ms Acheson called out to her husband before ringing her daughter Sandra, who lived nearby. When Sandra and her husband arrived at her parents home a short time later, she noticed the door at the side of the house was open. She then discovered her father lying face forward on the kitchen floor.
The emergency services were called, and when Mr Acheson was turned over there was blood and fluid on his face and on the floor.
A post mortem revealed Mr Acheson died of “coronary artery atheroma in association with pressure on his neck, and emotional and physical stress.”
The pathologist’s view was that whilst Mr Acheson had a pre-existing heart condition, the emotional stress of finding an intruder in his home, coupled with the physical stress of being involved in a struggle with the intruder, played their parts in precipitating a heart attack.
Mr Acheson sustained several injuries in the fatal altercation, including injuries suggestive of pressure applied to the neck, such as grasping of the neck or the neck being held in the crook of an elbow.
The pensioner also had bruising to his cheek, lacerations to his lip and a blunt trauma to his face which was consistent with “a blow being delivered.”
In addition, the pensioner had bruising to his arms which suggested he was trying to defence himself.
Mr Justice Weir spoke of the “catastrophic” effect Toland’s actions have had on the family, and highlighted the fact that Ms Acheson, who was “so frightened by the invasion”, had been “quite unable to return home.”
He told Toland: “The damage you have done to this family ... can never be repaired.”
A probation report which was submitted to the court revealed that Toland has expressed remorse for causing the death of Mr Acheson.
However, the judge told Toland “unfortunately your remorse didn’t manifest itself in telling the police what you had done when you learned of his death. Instead, the family had to endure a pain-staking police investigation over a period of time before they connected you with the crime.”
Members of the Acheson family were present for the sentencing, but declined to speak about today’s sentencing to the media.