When neighbours' row got out of control

By Sarah Bell
BBC News

Krystal Hart was three months pregnant when she died

While arguments between neighbours are common, they rarely end in violence. So why did a row in south London end in murder?

Known as "nappy valley" because of a high number of young families, the affluent streets of Battersea are not an obvious setting for a doorstep execution.

But among the glossy boutiques and cafes in this leafy part of south London, a bitter row between neighbours ended with a brutal killing.

On Good Friday last year 22-year-old Krystal Hart opened her front door to a gunman, Thomas Hughes, who shot her twice in the head.

'Neighbour from hell'

It came after a long-running dispute between Krystal and neighbour Angie Brewer, who lived in flats in a converted terraced house.

Hughes was said by the prosecution to be "infatuated" with Miss Brewer and to have committed the murder out of misguided loyalty after she complained about an encounter over a parking space that morning.

She [Angie Brewer] will have a huge moral responsibility Prosecutor Aftab Jafferjee Man guilty of killing Krystal

Miss Brewer, 53, was described in court as a "neighbour from hell" who was "obsessive" about noise and had complained to the police and the county court.

Detective Chief Inspector Colin Sutton, who led the investigation, said she had a history of falling out with her neighbours.

He said: "She is a complex character, an intelligent, articulate woman, but you wouldn't want to live next door to her.

"It was a normal neighbour dispute, over rubbish, literally - putting rubbish in the wrong place - playing loud music, banging the gate."

In fact, at the time of the murder, police were compiling a file against Miss Brewer in a bid to secure an anti-social behaviour order (Asbo).

"She was known to the police, always ringing them about the things which were going on," said Det Ch Insp Sutton.

Both she and Miss Hart had installed CCTV cameras trained on each other's front doors as the dispute "festered".

They rowed about noise, rubbish and parking

The court heard Miss Brewer, who lived in the downstairs flat, had made threats to Krystal and her boyfriend, David Siveter, and claimed: "Anyone messing with me, I will get them killed".

Det Ch Insp Sutton said: "She was still having quite a battle with them and feeling quite aggressive towards Krystal right until it happened."

On Good Friday morning Hughes, 40, flew into a rage after he spotted Krystal's boyfriend, David Siveter, writing down the number plate of his car.

The jury watched CCTV footage of him banging on the door and shouting "Come out bitch" before Krystal opened the door and shots rang out.

Det Ch Insp Sutton said Hughes was "a bit of a wannabe gangster" who regularly used skunk, cocaine and crack.

"He sold a bit of drugs and had a couple of guns and was trying to curry favour with Angie," he added.

Mysterious hitman

Prosecutor Aftab Jafferjee told the jury Miss Brewer had been cleared of criminal involvement in the murder but "moral responsibility is another matter".

He said: "This defendant did what he did precisely because of the underlying animosity and him empathising with Angie Brewer."

"She will have a huge moral responsibility."

Hughes claimed he was innocent and blamed a mysterious Jamaican hitman - who nobody else saw - who he said Miss Brewer had hired.

Thomas Hughes was a loner who lived with his mother

In court Miss Brewer, who had told police Hughes was the killer, denied she had "sold her story" to the Sun newspaper in the aftermath of the shooting but admitted she had contacted them to put over her version of events.

A survey conducted by the Legal Services Commission in 2006 showed neighbour problems was the second most common civil justice problem reported by respondants.

Citizens Advice helps people involved in such disputes.

It says the most common causes for complaint are issues like shared access to property, boundaries, noise, parking and overhanging trees.

The first step is to write to a potentially violent neighbour, rather than confronting them in person.

It was a completely disproportionate reaction to what was a common sort of dispute between two neighbours. How could you possibly think this is the way to resolve something like that? Det Ch Insp Colin Sutton

If this fails, Citizens Advice suggests using a mediator to try and find common ground between neighbours and find a way forward.

Police or environmental health officers may be able to help if the problem involves laws being broken.

Court action is considered to be an expensive final resort in successfully solving problems.

Det Ch Insp Sutton said of Hughes: "It was a completely disproportionate reaction to what was a common sort of dispute between two neighbours. How could you possibly think this is the way to resolve something like that?"