Neighbourhood Horror: Two Women Convicted of Murder After Brutal Attack on Stephen
Good old-fashioned policing combined with forensic genius and mobile phone analysis has landed Nicola Lethbridge and Zoe Rider in court, accused of the savage murder of 60-year-old Stephen and the robbery of his friends.
Shock Attack Caught on Camera
During a tense three-week trial at Sheffield Crown Court, chilling details emerged about the attack on 9 August 2023. Lethbridge and Rider, who lived just doors away from Stephen on Fraser Drive, Woodseats, betrayed their community by targeting him instead of protecting it.
The pair barged into Stephen’s home, assaulted him, and documented the abuse on a mobile phone. Stephen bravely used an emergency call line in his home to plead for help.
“During the call, Stephen asked for an ambulance, while a recording played of Rider demanding his property as he lay critically injured,” the court heard.
Ambulance Too Late as Victim Left to Die
The attack happened around 11:30pm. Despite Stephen’s desperate call, the women fled before the ambulance arrived, leaving him gravely injured. They then carried on socialising nearby as Stephen was rushed to hospital. Tragically, he died two days later from his injuries.
Forensics Nail the Pair
Police launched a thorough investigation involving door-to-door inquiries and a painstaking review of the emergency call recording. The breakthrough came with Lethbridge and Rider’s arrests, revealing damning evidence on their phones — including the shocking video of the assault.
Forensic experts found Stephen’s blood on a pair of cream jogging bottoms worn by one of the women in the video. Both women’s DNA was also found in the waistband, placing them at the scene beyond doubt.
Swift Justice: Guilty in Just One Hour
The pair turned on each other during the trial but it didn’t matter. Nicola Lethbridge, 45, and Zoe Rider, 36, both from Fraser Drive, were found guilty of murder and robbery by a jury in just one hour.
They are set to be sentenced at Sheffield Crown Court on 15 June. The community can finally breathe a sigh of relief that justice is on its way.
