Can Arslan jailed for murdering neighbour Matthew Boorman

A man who subjected his neighbours to years of anti-social behaviour before stabbing one of them to death has been jailed for at least 38 years.

Can Arslan, 52, lay in wait for Matthew Boorman as he came home from work then stabbed him 27 times on his front lawn.

It was the culmination of 12 years of threats to neighbours in Walton Cardiff, Gloucestershire.

Judge Johannah Cutts said Arslan had “caused terror” as she sentenced him to life at Bristol Crown Court.

Mr Boorman’s wife Sarah told the court her family lived a “life of misery” in their own home, too scared to use their garden or backdoor through fear Arslan would make threats.

“We were always on edge, I will not say his name. To me he is simply the monster next door,” she said.

Arslan denied murder on the grounds of diminished responsibility, but was convicted after a trial.

He admitted wounding Mrs Boorman, whom he stabbed in the leg.

He also admitted a charge of affray and the attempted murder of another neighbour, Peter Marsden.

One of Mr Boorman’s three children saw the attack unfold from an upstairs bedroom on 5 October.

Mrs Boorman added: “What I and my 12-year-old son witnessed that day will haunt us for as long as we live.

“Every day I wake up and my heart shatters more.

“I hear him saying ‘no’ as he was being stabbed and I see the man next door sitting on his body, laughing at me.”

Mrs Boorman suffered a deep wound to her leg as she tried to pull Arslan off her husband.

The killer then forced his way into the home of Mr Marsden and knifed him eight times, although he survived the attack.

The day before the killing, Arslan told a police officer he would murder his neighbour.

Judge Cutts told the court the neighbours sought legal action in the months leading up to murder because they “felt unsafe in their own homes”.

“They made every attempt they could within the law to prevent you (Arslan) behaving this way. A community protection notice, a council injunction,” she said.

Jailing him for life on Thursday, Judge Cutts said his acts were a targeted and planned series of attacks of people behind the injunction.

“After your arrest you faked amnesia and mental illness to try to avoid the consequences of your actions. You caused terror to those around you.

“A campaign of harassment and abuse of the most extreme nature.”

Gloucestershire Police made a mandatory referral to the Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC) in light of the many reported incidents prior to Mr Boorman’s death.

A spokesman for the IOPC said its investigation began in November and a misconduct notice had been served on a police constable “in relation to their contact with Mr Arslan”.

“Such notices advise an officer their conduct is subject to investigation and do not necessarily mean any disciplinary proceedings will follow,” the spokesperson added.

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