Man sentenced after pleading guilty to Brentwood murder
Jevgenijs Lapkovskis admitted the murder of Lee Murrell in Brentwood in April this year.
Last updated 10th Oct 2022
A man has been sentenced to life in prison with a minimum of 14 years after evidence gathered by our detectives left him no choice but to admit his guilt.
Jevgenijs Lapkovskis admitted the murder of Lee Murrell in Brentwood on Tuesday 5 April this year.
We attended an address on Warley Hill at about 1.10pm after being alerted to an incident through colleagues in Garda Siochana, the national police service of Ireland.
Earlier that morning Lapkovskis had called family in the Republic of Ireland to explain to them that he had violently assaulted Mr Murrell using a bottle and he didn’t know what to do.
Soon after, a member of Lapkovskis’ family attended a police station in Ireland to report the incident. That report was then relayed to us.
When officers arrived, they found Lee, 29 had been seriously injured and despite medics’ best efforts he was, sadly, pronounced dead at the scene.
Lapkovskis, 36, of Warley Hill, Brentwood was arrested at the scene and later charged with Lee’s murder.
He initially claimed the incident was a result of self-defence but appeared at Basildon Crown Court last week and admitted the charge.
He was handed a life sentence today at Basildon Crown Court and must serve a minimum of 14 years.
In a statement, Lee’s family said: “Today we finally have justice for Lee.
“After six gruelling months of waiting to see if we would have to endure an emotional and exhausting trial and waiting to find out why Lee’s life was taken needlessly and tragically, we didn’t get all the answers we wanted and perhaps we never will.
“We would like to thank Essex Police, the justice system and the support services who all worked so hard for Lee with sheer determination and dedication.
“Without their efforts. I fear that an extremely dangerous individual would be free to walk the streets.
“Thank you for giving us time to grieve and while we try and re build our lives.”
Detective Chief Inspector Ant Alcock, who led our investigation, said: “Lapkovskis used different deadly weapons in his attack on Lee and, very sadly, he was fatally wounded.
“Lapkovskis did initially attempt to claim that his actions were in self-defence. They were not. He knowingly carried out a sustained assault on Lee, a man who trusted Lapkovskis as a friend, which ultimately led to Lee losing his life.
“Thankfully, the evidence we were able to piece together left Lapkovskis with no choice but to admit his guilt. That, at the very least, has spared Lee’s family having to sit through a traumatic trial and today he has been sentenced to an appropriate time in prison for his actions.”
DCI Alcock added: “More than anything else, my thoughts are with Lee’s family who had described him as a ‘much loved son and brother’ and I know that no conviction will ever bring him back but I hope today’s result will help them move forward.”