A retired schoolteacher murdered in his Co Antrim home was subjected to a prolonged and savage attack with a poker, axe and claw hammer, a court has been told.
As harrowing details surrounding the death of Robert Flowerday emerged for the first time, Belfast Crown Court heard that the 64-year old was "an exemplary human being" who made a "lifelong contribution to society".
Michael Gerard Owens (35), from Lisburn Road, Glenavy, admitted carrying out the murder and will learn next month how long he will have to spend in prison before he is considered eligible for release.
The court heard today that after breaking into the victim's Mill Road home in Crumlin on January 27 last year, Owens attacked him with an array of weapons.
Prosecuting barrister David McDowell said he suffered a multitude of significant wounds including 18 separate lacerations to his scalp, face and neck.
His jaw and nose were broken, his skull was fractured in five places, and extensive wounds to his hands, wrists and arms suggested he tried to defend himself.
Mr McDowell said since retiring Mr Flowerday, who was unmarried and lived alone, had worked on a casual basis as a tutor.
At around 9.20pm on Sunday January 28 last year, the parents of a student called police to express concern after he failed to turn up for a tutoring session.
The parents went to Mr Flowerday's home, where they saw an unknown male in the property.
They knocked on the door but no-one answered, and when police arrived at 9.50pm they discovered the victim's partially clothed body sitting in an armchair covered by a duvet and cushions.
An axe, poker and claw-hammer were found at the blood-splattered scene and a post mortem concluded Mr Flowerday had been subjected to a "sustained assault that was concentrated to his head and neck" which resulted in fatal brain injuries.
It also stated that "the majority of the lacerations to the scalp had a linear profile, indicating multiple forceful blows with a weapon... such as an axe or hatchet".
Mr McDowell said on the day after the murder, police were approached by a local man who told them he had met with Owens the afternoon before in Crumlin Glen car park.
He said he appeared drunk and had told him he was going to Mr Flowerday's house to burgle it.
Owens was then said to have drunk a bottle of wine before placing a plastic bag over his head as a makeshift balaclava and walking off in the direction of the house.
He was next seen in Crumlin at 10.45pm that night. He had bought Chinese food and got a lift with a man who noted he appeared dirty and had a cut to his hand.
He said Owens told him 'I'm just going to the river to dump these clothes" before getting out of the car.
The clothes have never been found.
Mr McDowell said Owens later also told the man he met in the car park: "I think I killed him. I used a hatchet."
He added that he had intended to set fire to Mr Flowerday's home but had been disturbed.
Owens was arrested the following day and answered 'no comment' to all questions put to him.
His DNA was found on a plastic bag at the murder scene and also under Mr Flowerday's fingernails.
Closing the Crown's case in the sentencing hearing, Mr McDowell spoke of "gratuitous violence", noted the multiple weapons used and said the attack was "entirely unprovoked".
Also cited was the impact the ex-teacher's death has had on his family and friends as well as the "outpouring of outrage and support" on social media by former students.
Defence barrister John McCrudden said of Mr Flowerday: "He was a good man, he was a decent man. He made a lifelong contribution to society, to the local community and the the local church.
"He was an exemplary human being and the loss of Mr Flowerday is all the greater for that."
Mr McCrudden said Owen had acknowledged his actions, having committed an "unspeakable, atrocious attack on this decent, innocent, well-intentioned man on the sanctity of his own home".
He said he was a man with mental health issues who at the time was abusing alcohol and cocaine, adding that his mental health worsened following a traumatic incident within his family.
He added that in a pre-sentence report, Owens gave an account of what occurred which showed both the "magnitude of the crime" and his "expressions of remorse and shame".
Mr Justice Colton said he needed time to reflect on the case and would hand Owens his tariff term on December 20.