Coin collector ‘stabbed to death over Beatrix Potter 50p pieces’
Danny Bostock is accused of killing rival Gordon McGhee during bungled burglary
A coin enthusiast stabbed a rival collector to death over his rare Beatrix Potter 50p pieces, a court has heard.
Gordon McGhee, 52, was found dead at his flat in Colchester, Essex, in August. He had 14 knife wounds to his face, neck and upper body.
Days later, Police arrested Danny Bostock, 33, who knew McGhee and “shared a passion for numismatics, the study of coins and currency”, reports The Times. The pair had been drinking together hours before the killing.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
Opening the trial at Ipswich Crown Court, prosecutor Andrew Jackson described the attack as “determined and brutal”. He claimed that Bostock had stabbed McGhee multiple times, before turning on a gas cooker and setting a towel on fire in a bid to create an explosion, “to destroy McGhee’s body and all traces of what he had done”.
The court heard that the knife used in the attack and most of McGhee’s coin collection, including some rare Beatrix Potter coins, have not been recovered.
Jackson told the jury: “It was in the early hours of Wednesday 22 August last year that this defendant Danny Bostock went to the home of Gordon McGhee.
“He went there to burgle McGhee’s home. He was disturbed during the course of the burglary by McGhee and so he murdered McGhee by stabbing him several times.”
Bostock allegedly wanted McGhee’s coins commemorating the author after swapping his own collection with other local enthusiasts hours earlier.
Jackson said: “After the murder, McGhee’s coin collection, the bulk of it, couldn’t be found. We say it was this defendant who took it.”
The court heard that on the evening of the murder, Bostock had been captured on CCTV wearing a distinctive pair of Lonsdale trainers that were “later forensically linked to blood at the flat”, reports The Sun.
Bostock’s DNA was also said to be on the lit towel, and McGhee’s blood was “found on the left pedal of Bostock’s GT Aggressor mountain bike”, reports Yahoo! News.
Bostock denies murder and attempted arson. The trial continues and is expected to last for three weeks.
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
-
Today's political cartoons - November 3, 2024
Cartoons Sunday's cartoons - presidential pitching, wavering convictions, and more
By The Week US Published
-
Why Man United finally lost patience with ten Hag
Talking Point After another loss United sacked ten Hag in hopes of success in the Champion's League
By The Week UK Published
-
Who are the markets backing in the US election?
Talking Point Speculators are piling in on the Trump trade. A Harris victory would come as a surprise
By The Week UK Published
-
Home Office worker accused of spiking mistress’s drink with abortion drug
Speed Read Darren Burke had failed to convince his girlfriend to terminate pregnancy
By The Week Staff Published
-
In hock to Moscow: exploring Germany’s woeful energy policy
Speed Read Don’t expect Berlin to wean itself off Russian gas any time soon
By The Week Staff Published
-
Were Covid restrictions dropped too soon?
Speed Read ‘Living with Covid’ is already proving problematic – just look at the travel chaos this week
By The Week Staff Last updated
-
Inclusive Britain: a new strategy for tackling racism in the UK
Speed Read Government has revealed action plan setting out 74 steps that ministers will take
By The Week Staff Published
-
Sandy Hook families vs. Remington: a small victory over the gunmakers
Speed Read Last week the families settled a lawsuit for $73m against the manufacturer
By The Week Staff Published
-
Farmers vs. walkers: the battle over ‘Britain’s green and pleasant land’
Speed Read Updated Countryside Code tells farmers: ‘be nice, say hello, share the space’
By The Week Staff Published
-
Motherhood: why are we putting it off?
Speed Read Stats show around 50% of women in England and Wales now don’t have children by 30
By The Week Staff Published
-
Anti-Semitism in America: a case of double standards?
Speed Read Officials were strikingly reluctant to link Texas synagogue attack to anti-Semitism
By The Week Staff Published