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Father and son found guilty of teen's car chase murder

Father and son found guilty of teen's car chase murder

The Advertiser6 days ago
A high-speed chase turned deadly when a father and son caught up to the car they were pursuing and shot a teenager.
John Paul Evans, 57, and his son Keith Evans, 31, faced a trial in the NSW Supreme Court after pleading not guilty to the murder of 19-year-old Jesse Thompson in 2017.
The jury was told the pair were in a ute speeding through the streets of Wyong, on the NSW Central Coast, in pursuit of a Toyota Kluger.
Keith Evans was holding a shotgun that discharged at Mr Thompson, who was sitting in the back seat of the second car when he was struck.
The 19-year-old died from his injuries.
After deliberating for more than a week, the 12 jurors returned verdicts of guilty for both father and son on Wednesday morning.
The men were convicted of murdering Mr Thompson more than eight years after the teenager was killed in what was framed as an act of retribution.
The jury was told Keith Evans had assaulted the teenager's friend, Jayke Rodgers, to the point of hospitalisation in the days leading up to the deadly car chase.
On the day of the pursuit, Mr Rodgers and some of his friends retaliated by smashing a glass door at the Evans' family home.
They later met with more friends at a local park and piled into the Kluger before becoming involved in a car chase with the Evans' ute.
One of the key issues for the jurors to consider was whether Keith Evans intended to fire the shotgun, or whether it was an accident.
In delivering its guilty verdict, the jury determined he and his father were responsible for Mr Thompson's death.
Both men will be sentenced at a later date.
A high-speed chase turned deadly when a father and son caught up to the car they were pursuing and shot a teenager.
John Paul Evans, 57, and his son Keith Evans, 31, faced a trial in the NSW Supreme Court after pleading not guilty to the murder of 19-year-old Jesse Thompson in 2017.
The jury was told the pair were in a ute speeding through the streets of Wyong, on the NSW Central Coast, in pursuit of a Toyota Kluger.
Keith Evans was holding a shotgun that discharged at Mr Thompson, who was sitting in the back seat of the second car when he was struck.
The 19-year-old died from his injuries.
After deliberating for more than a week, the 12 jurors returned verdicts of guilty for both father and son on Wednesday morning.
The men were convicted of murdering Mr Thompson more than eight years after the teenager was killed in what was framed as an act of retribution.
The jury was told Keith Evans had assaulted the teenager's friend, Jayke Rodgers, to the point of hospitalisation in the days leading up to the deadly car chase.
On the day of the pursuit, Mr Rodgers and some of his friends retaliated by smashing a glass door at the Evans' family home.
They later met with more friends at a local park and piled into the Kluger before becoming involved in a car chase with the Evans' ute.
One of the key issues for the jurors to consider was whether Keith Evans intended to fire the shotgun, or whether it was an accident.
In delivering its guilty verdict, the jury determined he and his father were responsible for Mr Thompson's death.
Both men will be sentenced at a later date.
A high-speed chase turned deadly when a father and son caught up to the car they were pursuing and shot a teenager.
John Paul Evans, 57, and his son Keith Evans, 31, faced a trial in the NSW Supreme Court after pleading not guilty to the murder of 19-year-old Jesse Thompson in 2017.
The jury was told the pair were in a ute speeding through the streets of Wyong, on the NSW Central Coast, in pursuit of a Toyota Kluger.
Keith Evans was holding a shotgun that discharged at Mr Thompson, who was sitting in the back seat of the second car when he was struck.
The 19-year-old died from his injuries.
After deliberating for more than a week, the 12 jurors returned verdicts of guilty for both father and son on Wednesday morning.
The men were convicted of murdering Mr Thompson more than eight years after the teenager was killed in what was framed as an act of retribution.
The jury was told Keith Evans had assaulted the teenager's friend, Jayke Rodgers, to the point of hospitalisation in the days leading up to the deadly car chase.
On the day of the pursuit, Mr Rodgers and some of his friends retaliated by smashing a glass door at the Evans' family home.
They later met with more friends at a local park and piled into the Kluger before becoming involved in a car chase with the Evans' ute.
One of the key issues for the jurors to consider was whether Keith Evans intended to fire the shotgun, or whether it was an accident.
In delivering its guilty verdict, the jury determined he and his father were responsible for Mr Thompson's death.
Both men will be sentenced at a later date.
A high-speed chase turned deadly when a father and son caught up to the car they were pursuing and shot a teenager.
John Paul Evans, 57, and his son Keith Evans, 31, faced a trial in the NSW Supreme Court after pleading not guilty to the murder of 19-year-old Jesse Thompson in 2017.
The jury was told the pair were in a ute speeding through the streets of Wyong, on the NSW Central Coast, in pursuit of a Toyota Kluger.
Keith Evans was holding a shotgun that discharged at Mr Thompson, who was sitting in the back seat of the second car when he was struck.
The 19-year-old died from his injuries.
After deliberating for more than a week, the 12 jurors returned verdicts of guilty for both father and son on Wednesday morning.
The men were convicted of murdering Mr Thompson more than eight years after the teenager was killed in what was framed as an act of retribution.
The jury was told Keith Evans had assaulted the teenager's friend, Jayke Rodgers, to the point of hospitalisation in the days leading up to the deadly car chase.
On the day of the pursuit, Mr Rodgers and some of his friends retaliated by smashing a glass door at the Evans' family home.
They later met with more friends at a local park and piled into the Kluger before becoming involved in a car chase with the Evans' ute.
One of the key issues for the jurors to consider was whether Keith Evans intended to fire the shotgun, or whether it was an accident.
In delivering its guilty verdict, the jury determined he and his father were responsible for Mr Thompson's death.
Both men will be sentenced at a later date.
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