Two men have been jailed for life after being convicted of murder in Didcot
Last updated 21st Dec 2020
19-year-old Brookton Lagan of Robin Way, Didcot, and Taison Cyrille, also aged 19, of Market End Way, Bicester have both been jailed at Oxford Crown Court.
Lagan and Cyrille were given life sentences, with both of them to serve minimum terms of 19 years.
On Thursday 17 Dec, Lagan and Cyrille were both found guilty of murder, and two counts each of grievous bodily harm with intent. Cyrille was also convicted of conspiracy to supply Class A drugs. Lagan had pleaded guilty to conspiracy to supply Class A drugs at an earlier hearing.
A jury deliberated for two and a half days before returning their verdicts and finding both men guilty, following a trial that lasted eight weeks.
A third defendant, Isaac Boyland, who was on trial for murder, two counts of grievous bodily harm with intent, and conspiracy to supply Class A drugs, was found not guilty of all charges.
On Thursday 9 January this year, the victim, 44-year-old Darren MacCormick was murdered in Mendip Heights in Didcot, after he sustained multiple stab wounds after an altercation at around 3.41am.
Senior Investigating Officer, Detective Chief Inspector Stuart Blaik, of the Major Crime Unit, said:
“I hope that following the life sentences of Brookton Lagan and Taison Cyrille today, the family and close friends of Darren MacCormick can now begin to move on from this terrible ordeal that has spanned almost twelve months.
“They bravely sat through eight weeks of court proceedings, and had to endure reliving in detail the circumstances of Mr MacCormick’s death, as well as having to patiently wait for this case to get to crown court during the current global pandemic.
“No conviction or sentence that was passed down in court today can ultimately heal the pain of losing a loved one in such needless circumstances, but I do hope that now the case has concluded it can provide the family with some consolation that proceedings are now over and they can begin to slowly move on.
“Brookton Lagan and Tyson Cyrille are clearly very dangerous and violent men, who murdered Darren MacCormick completely unnecessarily on January 9 this year. Following this, they tried to flee the country by flying to Amsterdam."