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22
Sept 2022
Murderer fell asleep after 'brutally' killing man in Harrogate
Police have revealed they found murderer Vitalijus Koreiva asleep in the same flat as his victim when they went to investigate.
Gracijus Balciauskas, 41, was killed on Mayfield Grove on December 20, 2021.
Vitalijus Koreiva, 37, and Jaroslaw Rutowicz, 39, were jailed for murder and manslaughter respectively at Leeds Crown Court this morning.
After the sentencing, North Yorkshire Police described how the shocking incident unfolded.
Supermarket staff dialled 999 after being approached by a man who told them “someone is dead”.
Rutowicz took officers to the flat on Mayfield Grove where they found the body of a man wrapped in a large rug in a bedroom. A post mortem later showed he had suffered severe injuries to his head and torso.
Koreiva, who was asleep on the sofa, was arrested along with Rutowicz.
The crime scene at the flat on Mayfield Grove in December 2021.
Police analysed Rutowicz’s phone and found "disturbing and graphic videos" showing assaults on the victim on the day of his death.
In one clip, filmed at 5.52am, the victim was kicked in the head and in the ribs, and cried out in pain.
In another clip, filmed at 7.02am, Rutowicz, who was holding the phone, tried to roll the victim over and give him a cigarette. A clip filmed at 7.21am showed the victim lying on the floor with his eyes closed.
In interview, Koreiva told police he had gone to sleep and when he woke up he found Mr Balciauskas dead on the floor, and got a rug to put over him.
Separately, Rutowicz told officers that Koreiva had assaulted him before attacking the victim. But both Koreiva and Rutowicz were charged in connection with his death.
North Yorkshire Police today released CCTV showing Koreiva and Rutowicz buying alcohol hours before the attack happened.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ucIZy_WPlSY
Read more on the case:
- Harrogate murder trial hears that body was found in a rug
- Harrogate murder suspect claims he feared for his own life after ‘brutal’ assault
- Man sentenced to life in prison for Harrogate Mayfield Grove murder
Jailing Koreiva for life this morning, Judge Rodney Jameson KC told him the attack need not have been fatal “had you not tried to drunkenly cover up what you had done”.
Rutowicz was jailed for 12 years for the manslaughter of Mr Balciauskas.
Guilty: Jaroslaw Rutowicz (left) and Vitalijus Koreiva.
DCI Jonathan Sygrove, from North Yorkshire Police’s major investigation team, said:
'A friendly and jovial person'
In a statement issued following today's sentencing, Mr Balciauskas’ family said:
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