UK man, heir to ₹2,500 crore business empire, under trial for friend’s murder

Dylan Thomas, accused of killing William Bush, 23, is the grandson of Sir Gilbert Stanley Thomas, whose empire of $292 million (approx. ₹2500 crore) includes Peter’s Pies, known for its classic pies and bakery goods in the United Kingdom since 1970.

The case

According to a report in the New York Post, an argument broke out between Thomas and Bush on the night of the alleged murder. Thomas, at whose flat the two friends met that night, allegedly attacked Bush with a knife, delivering a stab wound to the back of the latter’s neck, prosecutors said.

He reportedly inflicted a fatal injury by severing an artery in Bush’s neck.

The victim reportedly suffered as many as 37 stab wounds, including 13 concentrated on his neck.

Neighbours spoke of hearing “screams of horror” during the attack. A police bodycam footage, played in the court, showed Thomas, covered in blood and claiming he had “disarmed” an attacker.

Additionally, Ella Jeffries, the victim’s girlfriend, said in court that the dynamics between the friends had been “deteriorating” for a while.

“Dylan had expressed ‘homicidal’ thoughts about William, who had started to barricade his door as he ‘feared’ his friend,” she stated.

Further, as per reports, Thomas was diagnosed with schizophrenia after his arrest. Also, weeks before the alleged murder, he was detained for attempting to “enter” the Buckingham Palace.

He has admitted to manslaughter but denied murder, leaving the jury to determine whether his actions were premeditated or influenced by the “mental illness.”