A 22 YEAR old man has been sentenced to life imprisonment after being found guilty of murdering another man during a frenzied attack in Skelmersdale.
www.rockfm.co.uk – 14 May 2010
Michal Kalinowski, of Abbeystead in the town, was sentenced at Preston Crown Court today (Thursday 13 May 2010). He has been told he must serve a minimum of 17 years before he is eligible to apply for parole.
Kalinowski, who is originally from Poland, was convicted of killing Peter Berkley by a jury at the end of an 11 day trial at the court yesterday.
Around 10.15am on Saturday 7 November 2009 police were called to an address on Abbeystead following the discovery of a man’s body.
On arrival officers found the body of Mr Berkley hidden under foliage in the rear garden of a set of multi occupancy flats.
A post mortem examination revealed the 43 year old from Ormskirk died as a result of multiple stab wounds.
It was quickly established that Mr Berkley was the landlord of the flats and had arranged to see Kalinowski on the evening of Friday 6 November 2009 regarding the non payment of his rent.
Kalinowski stabbed Mr Berkley 83 times before moving his body to the rear garden of the flats.
Following the discovery of Mr Berkley’s body on the Saturday morning, his car, a black Ford Ranger, was circulated as stolen.
This demonstrates the dangers to landlords when dealing with tenants in financial difficulties. The recent changes to LHA in preventing landlords from receiving direct payments increase this risk of violence.
This is because tenants who withhold their rent and threaten violence are rewarded financially by being able to keep the housing benefit. I personally had a situation where the council paid a tenant by mistake a 4 week payment then dismissed the event simply stating go and take it up with your tenant.
I found a drunk who punched me and started breaking glass panels in the doors because he had been paid the rent and spent it. This is the type of risk faced on a daily basis by landlords providing accommodation to young people who have no hope and no future and just hang out in their flats doing drink and drugs.
Any type of intervention is either met with violence or remarks such as I can do what I like I take a hike I will stay as long as possible without paying my rent as is my right.
Then after six months of stress and potential danger an eviction will result in possession but far from becoming homeless as a result of this behaviour the possession order provides the tenant with a document giving priority housing or emergency accommodation from the local council.
In any other business this would be a crime but for us landlords its a “civil matter” and as such the police have no interest and provide no assistance.
Comment by Oliver — 15/5/2010 #
As a landlord I have always been very reluctant to let to DSS tenants. The remarks by Oliver only go to reaffirm my determination never to do so. Finally he says that the ‘police have no interest and provide no assistance’. So what’s new? Their favourite phrase is, ‘There’s nothing we can do about it’ Then they plead for still more public funds.
Comment by Malcolm Stretten — 16/5/2010 #
I think it’s incredibly easy to leap onto this and begin stereotyping but it is not being on ‘DSS’ that turns people into ‘frenzied murderers’ it is the impoverishment they suffer and the very attitude you seem to maintain when allowing these likely rare incidents to affirm something which just isn’t true and is no different from discriminating against any other ‘minority’ only the poor and homeless in this world are the overwhelming majority.
I really hope for the sake of all landlords that relationships between them and those they seem to begin to treat with such contempt improve, despite stark lessons from history, we seem to tread the same ground over and over. Perhaps that is because of the rabid drive to impose meaningless culture on our people here in the uk from dancing on ice to the onslaught of perpetually miserable soap operas. We rarely take time away from the pub or the television to read a book or learn about why we are where we are, why our society is organized the way it is, etc. We are all also in the hamster wheel.
My point is there is a rising tide of resentment for the largely unwarrented discrimination inflicted on those on benefits who’ve had various health problems or live in difficult environments. This only feeds the landlords resentment and hey presto you have the most classic two factions, the property barons and the landless peasants, who were born into debt.
If you are surprised that the odd landlord gets done in, then with all due respect start paying attention to how every inch of the world is becoming private property, the extent of the suffering of the homeless or those in abusive homes medically unable to work and get out on their own accord while our government has in the past few decades had a firesale to the private sector: in housing, a sector drained of social conscience, if they were ever intended to have any.
Let’s not be fooled that we all have owners, and these two factions are played against each other just like the U.S played Iran and Iraq against each other in the 80′s to ensure there were no dominant powers remaining for it’s conquest in 2003. I would say you only have to convince yourself that your behaviour and judgement is justified, but the evidence shows that property owners, like the police, are siding with power and capital at the expense and mass misery of the masses who slave their entire lives, never even to own a square inch of their own land.
I think this needs careful thought and consideration, and I didn’t mean to offend anyone, but as a student of history, sociology and current affairs, it is obvious both factions are another example of our real owners playing divide and conquer. It’s your choice to dance to their music.
Comment by Michael — 18/5/2010 #