'Military-style' killing sentence

Three men have been convicted of killing a 20-year-old man in a "military-style" attack.

Mark Cook, 39, and Rhys Lewis, 29, were found guilty of murdering construction worker Ryan Edwards, while Lee Ward, 30, was convicted of manslaughter.

Mr Edwards, from Croeserw, near Maesteg, was attacked at Bridgend railway station car park in July 2007.

Cook and Lewis were sentenced to life imprisonment while Ward will be sentenced in September.

Cook will serve a minimum term of 16 years, and Lewis a minimum of 14-and-a-half years.

"Onlookers were justifiably horrified. Your violence was mindless"
Mr Justice Wyn Williams

The time they have already spent in custody will be deducted from the sentences.

Mr Justice Wyn Williams told the pair the fact the assault took place in public was an aggravating feature.

He told them: "Onlookers were justifiably horrified. Your violence was mindless.

"There was no possible justification for what you did."

The three men, all from the Bridgend area, had denied murder, claiming they acted in self-defence.

Cook had an altercation with one of Mr Edwards's friends outside a club in Bridgend, the jury at Cardiff Crown Court had heard.

Cook, a part-time bouncer, then met up with Lewis, an ex-Royal Marine, and Ward before heading to Bridgend railway station.

The prosecutor, John Charles Rees QC said: "They marched to the station on a mission to teach the boys a lesson."

He told the jury the three men launched a "cold, calculated, military-style attack".

Mr Rees said the confrontation was a case of "men against boys" and the three men acted like "bullies and cowards".

The court heard Mr Edwards and two of his friends - Ashley Evans and Mark Kilnan - were left unconscious at the scene.

Cook was also found guilty of causing grievous bodily harm with intent on Ricky Williams, a friend of Mr Edwards.

All three were found guilty of attempting to cause grievous bodily harm to Mr Evans and Mr Kilnan.

Mr Edwards, described as a "gentle giant" by loved ones, died from brain injuries two days later in the Princess of Wales Hospital in Bridgend.

"We will never recover from losing Ryan. He will never be forgotten and is missed dearly by all his family and friends"
Family statement

After the hearing, Mr Edwards's family said in a statement that they were satisfied with the outcome and justice had been done.

"Ryan was a loving son, brother, grandson, cousin and friend but he is not with us because of the evil and callous actions of Cook, Lewis and Ward," said the statement.

"These brutal bullies have stolen our beautiful caring son, our gentle giant, and we feel they should spend the rest of their lives behind bars for what they have done.

"We will never recover from losing Ryan. He will never be forgotten and is missed dearly by all his family and friends.

"We would like to be left alone now to begin our grieving for Ryan and thank all those who have supported us during this extremely difficult time."

Det Ch Insp Danny Richards said: "Ryan Edwards was an honest, hard-working young man who was known to his family and friends as the big friendly giant.

"The evidence shows that on the night in question he was doing his utmost to protect his friends and remove them from danger.

"The thoughts of the investigation team are with Ryan's mum and dad, his family, and the Croeserw community."