Voice of Lincoln: Do we have a drinking problem?

A man who drove a knife into his victim’s neck has been given a life sentence for murder.

Michael Lambert plunged the knife into Andrew Maguire’s neck in the garden of a property in Newark Road in Lincoln on October 24, 2020.

An eye-witness reported the two men fighting in a front garden at around 5pm on October 24. They remained in the garden and Lambert was seen pushing the knife into Mr Maguire’s neck.

Lambert fled the scene carrying the knife. This can be seen on the CCTV footage police have released.

Police and ambulance attended and sadly confirmed Mr Maguire, aged 53, of Lincoln, had died.

A murder investigation was launched, and the section of Newark Road was closed off while forensics examined the scene.

Investigations placed Lambert, aged 32, at the scene. Lambert was arrested and charged in connection with Mr Maguire’s murder and possession of a knife.

He was remanded in custody and at a previous court hearing pleaded not guilty to murder. A week’s trial began on Monday, June 7, and has concluded on June 15.

Lambert, of Ambleside, Throckley, was convicted of murder and sentenced to life imprisonment with a minimum term of 12 years in jail at Leicestershire Crown Court.

Lambert was found not guilty of possession of a weapon.

Detective Inspector Andy McWatt said: “This was a brutal attack with an unwarranted level of violence and a man’s family have been left devastated by this mindless incident.

“Had the knife been left at the home, the outcome would have been very different. Instead this case epitomises the dangers of carrying a knife or weapon in a public place.

“Lincolnshire Police takes any incident involving a knife or weapon extremely seriously. Should you choose to carry one, even if you don’t intend to use it, there is every chance that someone could be either seriously injured or killed.

“I would like to thank and commend the bravery of all of the witnesses who came forward to help secure this conviction and I hope this is the start of some closure for Mr Maguire’s family and the local community.”

A 14-year-old schoolboy used such force to stab a 12-year-old that the tip of the knife blade was left embedded in his victim’s skull, a murder trial jury was told today.

The older boy is alleged to have lured the 12-year-old out of his home in the early hours and then carried out a sustained “brutal” and “savage” attack.

Roberts Buncis suffered stab wounds all over his body including a serious injury to his neck, the jury at Lincoln Crown Court was told.

The jury heard that Roberts was stabbed “again and again” and it appeared that the 14-year-old had also tried to cut off one of Roberts’ hands during a prolonged attack.

Mary Loram QC, prosecuting, said that the two boys had apparently been friends and were part of the same Facebook Messenger group.

Earlier the defendant appeared to be encouraging Roberts to sell drugs for him, she said.

The defendant, she said, had also discussed whether Roberts would snitch.

Roberts’ body was found in a wooded area near to a footpath in the village of Fishtoft on the morning of December 12, 2020.

Miss Loram said: “He (Roberts) had been subjected to a brutal and prolonged attack with a knife.

“In short he was stabbed to the head, to the back, neck, torso, legs and arms and those injuries inevitably led to his death.

“You will not be asked to look at any photographs, but you will be looking at a detailed re-creation of them so you can see for yourself the savagery and the extent of the attack upon him.

“We can see repeated injuries caused by a knife to the back. It is difficult to see how these could ever have been caused in self defence.

“The wound to the neck speaks for itself. The injuries to one of the hands was such that it looked as if, in the attack, the defendant had tried to cut it off.

“When the knife was found the tip was missing. The tip of the knife was found still lodged in his (Roberts) skull. He had been struck with such force as to break the tip of that knife.

“This was no instant reaction. To cause these amount of injuries must have taken time. It was truly a sustained attack and could never sensibly have been suggested to have been done in self defence.

“The person accused of killing Roberts is this defendant who is 14-years-old. He also lived in Boston and it seems was a friend of Roberts or at least seemed to be.

“This was a planned attack on Roberts. Maybe he (the defendant) didn’t intend to take it as far as he did. Maybe he did need to. However, we say it was planned by the defendant and Roberts was lured out of his house to be attacked.”

Miss Loram said that afterwards the defendant messaged another 14-year-old saying “Things went wrong” and “This wasn’t supposed to go down like this”.

Messages found on Roberts’ phone led to the defendant being identified as a prime suspect once the body was discovered.

As a result the home and garden where the defendant lived were searched.

Miss Loram said “In that garden under a pot was a knife. On that knife was the blood of Roberts and also of the defendant.

“A Nike top had been partially burned. There were some latex gloves. These had (the defendant’s) blood on them. That must have been as a result of a significant cut he had to his hand. There was also Roberts’ DNA on those gloves.”

Miss Loram told the jury that the defendant himself had cuts to his hand and following his arrest he was taken to hospital for treatment. When he was interviewed he made no comment to questions put to him.

The prosecutor told the jury that the defendant and another teenager had previously discussed attacking another boy who was accused of being a snitch. The lad involved was subsequently attacked as he waited at a bus stop in an incident five days before Roberts’ death.

Miss Loram said that messages exchanged at the time showed that the defendant “has a tendency towards gratuitous violence with no significant trigger”.

The other boy involved in that attack messaged the defendant saying: “Let’s hope Rob doesn’t snitch”.

The defendant responded “Rob’s a liability” which was met with the response “If he snitch – smack time”.

Later the other boy messaged the defendant saying “Rob’s dead. Countdown seven days, one hour eight minutes, 12 seconds,” with the countdown ending at midnight on December 13.

Miss Loram told the jury that just days after the concern was raised that Roberts was a snitch he was killed by the defendant.

She added that the defendant also appeared to be encouraging Roberts to sell drugs for him.

In a message exchange the defendant said “We are getting 3.5 to sell in a week. See if you can handle it” to which Roberts replied: “Alright that sounds easy”.

The 14 year old denies the murder of Roberts Buncis on 12 December 2020.

The trial continues Wednesday.

A man in his 30s was seriously injured, and another male was arrested, after an alleged stabbing in Grantham in the early hours of Tuesday morning.

Police were called to an address on Thames Road in Grantham at around 2.30am on Tuesday, June 15 after reports of a disturbance.

They were then later recalled to the same address where a man in his 30s had sustained a serious injury consistent with a knife wound. He is in hospital getting treatment for his injuries, which are not life threatening, according to Lincolnshire Police.

Due to the nature of the initial call, police sent firearms officers and dog units in armed response vehicles, where they conducted a thorough search of the property and immediate surrounding area. However, no weapon was located.

A 32-year man has been arrested in connection with the assault and remains in custody at the time of publication.

Police said they are following a number of lines of enquiry. The police wish to reassure the public that they will see an increased police presence in the area as investigative enquires are carried out.

A/Detective Inspector Paul Sands, from CID Grantham, said: “We are at an early stage of this serious investigation and we will keep an open mind about what happened.

“Serious violence such as this will never be acceptable and we will do all we can to protect the public from harm and bring the offenders to justice. To do so we need the public’s help, so please call us if you have any information that could help or approach the officers in the area.”

Police are appealing for witnesses and anyone with information is being urged to contact the force on 101 quoting incident 22 or 41 of June 15.

Cafe Pino has been given a fresh lease of life with Italian desserts and drinks as it reopened under new ownership on Tuesday.

It has been taken over by Dario Rossi, who is from the Italian region of Sicily. Daniel Ramsey, who worked as the assistant manager at Angel Coffee House in Lincoln for two years, is the new manager at Cafe Pino and was delighted to welcome the first customers through the door on Tuesday, June 15.

The original Cafe Pino opened on the corner of the High Street and Tentercroft Street in November 26, 2019. It previously closed its doors for good as the former owner Memet Ozer relocated to London after a family bereavement, but it is now back again under new ownership.

Cafe Pino has kept its original name and has created five new jobs, including manager Daniel and his colleagues Mia Farrar and Jasmin Slingsby.

The cafe has introduced new Italian desserts such as cannoli and aragostine, as well as vegan cakes and also freshly baked croissants each morning.

There will also be a mixture of sandwiches, paninis and toasties, including ham and cheese, Caprese with tomato and pesto, and vegan pepperoni.

There is a variety of hot and cold drinks available, including an Italian coffee known as a Cortado and a traditional frothy cappuccino.

A twist on Italian street food with “grandma style” homemade dishes was also among the original plans of the new owner, and will be introduced to the menu over the next few months.

Manager Daniel told The Lincolnite: “It feels great to be open. It has been weeks of getting things ready, but we are now serving food and drinks to the public, who we hope will love the new Cafe Pino.”

Cafe Pino is open between 8am and 5.30pm Monday to Friday, 9am-5pm on Saturday and 10am-4pm on Sunday.