Blog

Subsequently, prosecutor Paul Cavin KC told the jury that Feld had “dark places in his soul” that “were not in the darkest corners but very close to the surface”.

He said: “The extraordinary homophobic outburst is obviously something you won’t forget.”

Regarding the motive for the murder, the prosecutor said: “Was he going there because he knew that there would be people there that he could attack? Was he going there to attack someone who thought he might be gay? Who knows.

“The evidence clearly demonstrates that prior to that night, he had a serious, deep-rooted and longstanding interest in extreme violence with the use of a hammer and that was an impulse that could have been visited, perhaps, by anyone. ”.

The Old Bailey jury deliberated for three hours and 23 minutes to unanimously find Feld guilty of murder.

Judge Bryan deferred sentencing in order for a psychiatric report to be prepared on the defendant who has a personality disorder.

Previously, Cavan had recounted how Feld’s interest in extreme violence first emerged during a mental health assessment in 2017.

The defendant revealed that he used to go out “with a hammer, a screwdriver or razor blades, hoping to catch someone off guard… in the alleys.”

He said he would sometimes go out with a weapon “for example, a hammer” in case an “opportunity” presented itself.

Feld was arrested on August 20, 2021 while awaiting sentencing for waving a claw hammer outside a Poundland store two days after the murder.

A search of his home in Tower Hamlets, east London, uncovered two sledgehammers and a sledgehammer in a hallway cupboard, and a third sledgehammer in a sitting room cupboard.

Feld was released on bail after refusing to speak to officers or provide access to his mobile phone, jurors heard.

He was arrested again in January 2022 after his DNA was found in blood-stained nail clippings from the victim’s left hand.

In a further search of his apartment, police found another hammer and a razor next to Feld’s pillow.

Cavin told the jury that the contents of the defendant’s smartphone revealed his “deep interest in violence with the particular subject of hammer attacks.”

He said: “In the weeks leading up to August 16, he repeatedly visited websites containing videos of people being attacked with hammers, some of whom were beaten to death.”

An analyst also recovered two photographs of Feld posing with a claw hammer.

While remanded at Belmarsh Prison, Feld had “confessed” to the crime of “random murder committed against an unknown male” in a letter delivered to a corrections officer.

In the note, Feld complained that his prison wing was “irritating me to the extreme,” writing: “I’m fantasizing about killing one of these pieces of shit.”

Police also tracked the victim’s latest movements on CCTV, following him from his home in Whitechapel until his last sighting at 3:55am in the direction of the cemetery.

Camera footage also captured the defendant walking from the cemetery at around 4:13 a.m. on his way home after the murder.

Giving evidence at his trial, Feld claimed that he had taken up the hammer to hit trees to relieve stress.

He described being drawn to “creepy” gothic places, saying: “I decided to challenge myself, to walk in the dark.

“I kept looking over my shoulder, not expecting to see anyone.”