Guy Hedger killer fails in appeal bid against robbery murder conviction

A ROBBER who shot dead an advertising executive in his Ringwood mansion during a botched raid has had his bid to launch an appeal refused by top judges.

Kevin Downton, a carpenter and father-of-two, applied to the High Court in London for permission to challenge his convictions relating to the murder of Guy Hedger using a sawn-off shotgun.

But three judges, Patrick Field QC, Sir Timothy Holroyde and Akhlaq Choudhury QC, formally rejected the application on Tuesday morning.

Confirming the news, a spokesman for the Court of Appeal told the A&T: “This application has been refused by the full court.”

Downton, who was living at Winterbourne Stickland, near Blandford Forum, was given a life sentence and told he we would serve at least 34 years after he was convicted of killing Mr Hedger, aggravated burglary and possessing a firearm, following a Winchester Crown Court trial.

His co-defendant and accomplice Jason Bacchus, from West Howe, was convicted of the same charges and handed the same sentence. He has not appealed.

As reported in the A&T, Mr Hedger, who was 61, sustained fatal shotgun injuries after two masked raiders broke into the Castlewood residence he shared with husband Simon Hedger-Cooper.

During the hold-up just before 3am on Sunday 30th April 2017, the perpetrators ransacked the house and took jewellery worth £124,000.

At the time of his death, Mr Hedger was the brand and marketing director of the insurance firm Liverpool Victoria, and the creator of its distinctive green heart-shaped logo.

He had enjoyed a distinguished career working for Direct Line and Nestle, and was a founder and director of Avonbourne International Business and Enterprise Trust — which runs colleges and a primary school around Bournemouth. He had won many awards.

Mr Hedger-Cooper paid tribute to him after the trial, commenting: “Guy was not only a devoted husband; he was also a loving son, brother and uncle.

“The memory of Guy lives on in his work. The LV heart which he designed and the slightly off-the-wall adverts – all a mark of his creative genius and reminders of his professional success.”