The youngest daughter of murdered Stevenage man Peter Shickle told a crown court how how she couldn’t explain the pain in her heart since she found out the ‘sickening, disgusting and terrible’ way her father had been brutally beaten to death.
It came before Judge Richard Foster sentenced John Jamieson and Graham King – both 36 – to life in prison for battering Peter Shickle with a flat screen television and other items including a bronze statue at the 58-year-old’s Silam Road flat on November 6 last year.
Lauren Shickle battled against tears as she gave a statement at Luton Crowm Court before the sentencing.
She said: “Every aspect of my life has changed. It’s like I don’t know how to function.
“I went through some personal issues and he was supporting me, and that’s all gone now.
“I’ve been waking up in the night screaming, thinking about the way my dad was killed and nothing stops the pain.
“So many things have been left unsaid. If I get married and have children or if it’s my birthday or Father’s Day, my dad won’t be there for it now.”
Her harrowing statement was followed by another from her sister Carla, which was read out in court.
She said though her relationship with her father had been difficult because of his alcohol addiction, things had been improving before his death.
“There’s no words to describe my pain, I feel as though my heart has been ripped out,” she said.
The family also released a joint statement after the sentencing, which said: “A huge hole has been left in our lives following our father’s murder and words can never explain our sense of loss and devastation.
“His violent death has had a massive impact on our lives and this is something that we will never come to terms with.
“Today’s sentencing of Jamieson and King gives us little comfort, but we would like to thank the police and Crown Prosecution Service for their professionalism and support, and to also thank those individuals who gave up their time to be members of the jury or to give evidence in court.”
Jamieson, of Wigram Way, and King, of Harrow Court, will serve a minimum of 19 and 16 years respectively before being eligible for parole.
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