‘Sadistic’ women who filmed themselves torturing man to death jailed for at least 26 years | UK news

Zoe Rider and Nicola Lethbridge carried out a “vicious and extremely violent joint attack” on Stephen Koszyczarski, 60, in his flat in Sheffield last year. They left him with 22 separate wounds after falsely accusing him of being a pedophile.

Two “sadistic” women who filmed themselves torturing a man to death have been jailed for at least 26 years.

Warning: This story contains depictions of violence and explicit threats

Zoe Rider, 36, and Nicola Lethbridge, 45, were convicted of a “vicious and extremely violent joint attack” on 60-year-old neighbor Stephen Koszyczarski at his flat in Sheffield.

The court heard how they recorded their attack on the vulnerable man as they falsely accused him of being a pedophile on August 9, 2023.

Mr Koszyczarski was robbed by the pair and was left bleeding and with 22 separate wounds around his face, head and body. He died of his injuries two days later.

On Wednesday, Rider and Lethbridge were jailed for life with a minimum sentence of 26 years.

They were also sentenced to 13 years in prison for robbery, to run concurrently with their life sentences.

Judge Sarah Wright told Sheffield Crown Court the pair were “obviously fueled by drugs and possibly alcohol” when they carried out the attack.

She said: “Having heard the evidence in the case, I have absolutely no doubt that you went into Stephen’s flat together to threaten, assault and rob him, no doubt to finance his drug use.

“For whatever reason, during that robbery, you decided together to accuse Stephen completely falsely, and without any reason to do so, of being a pedophile.

“You attacked him in the most brutal, heartless and contemptuous manner. You launched a vicious and extremely violent joint attack on him.

“You exposed his genitals, threatened to mutilate him and shouted obscenities at him. In particular, you failed to listen to his denial of the charge or to offer him compassion when he was injured.”

Footage of threats to mutilate with scissors

Jurors at the trial were shown gruesome footage of Rider and Lethbridge, which included them threatening to mutilate Mr Koszyczarski with scissors.

At one point he pleads with them to stop and one of the defendants replies: “Do you think I give a ***?”

The jury was told Mr Koszyczarski died from blunt force trauma to the head, which caused bleeding on the brain.

Among the many other injuries he suffered were bruises to his chest caused by blows.

Prosecutors described the attack as “sadistic”.

Mr Koszyczarski used a phone line to call an ambulance as the two fatally wounded him.

South Yorkshire Police said that after the alarm was raised at around 11.30pm, but before the ambulance service arrived, the women left the seriously injured man and went to a nearby property.

Read more on Sky News:
Manchester City is suing the Premier League
Arrest for sex offense after flight diversion
The Peaky Blinders movie has been announced

Lethbridge and Rider were arrested after police conducted door-to-door inquiries and reviewed the alarm recording.

After the arrests, officers found a video of the pair assaulting Mr Koszyczarski on a mobile phone.

Rider and Lethbridge, both of Fraser Drive, Woodseats, Sheffield, were found guilty of murder and robbery in May.

Detective Chief Inspector Tom Woodward said Mr Koszyczarski was “a quiet man” who “kept to himself and was just going about his business”.

The senior officer said the victim’s death was “callous”, adding: “Lethbridge and Rider not only subjected Stephen to mental torture and physical abuse, but humiliated him during the attack by falsely accusing him that he is a pedophile, which was simply not the case. “