A drug dealer was today found guilty of brutally torturing and murdering a love rival in his own home – acting on information provided by the dead man’s ex-wife.
John Belfield, 31, ‘masterminded’ the savage killing of Thomas Campbell, whose bloodied and near-naked body was found in his hallway bound in extra-strength duct tape.
Jurors heard how Belfield became ‘obsessed and furious’ after Campbell began a relationship with his ex-girlfriend, Demi-Lee Driver, who the killer called a ‘money grabbing little dog’ in a series of threatening messages.
He led a gang of three men who were caught on CCTV bursting into Mr Campbell’s home in Mossley, Greater Manchester, to rob and torture him. They tied him up, before mutilating his face and pouring boiling liquid over his genitals.
After leaving the 38-year-old father of two to die in unimaginable agony, Belfield fled to the former Dutch colony of Suriname in South America.
Belfield’s right-hand man, Reece Steven, stood trial in his absence and was found guilty of murder and conspiracy to rob, while Stephen Cleworth, 38, was convicted of manslaughter and conspiracy to rob.
Mr Campbell’s vengeful ex-wife, Coleen Campbell, was found guilty of the same charges as Cleworth after passing Belfield crucial details about her former husband’s movements before his killing, including information passed on by their children.
Belfield and Steven shared a series of crowing messages about Mr Campbell’s injuries following the murder on July 2, 2022.
Steven wrote: ‘Tommy crumble. Dripping in tom juice everywhere’, to which Belfield replied: ‘Must have bled everywhere.’
John Belfield, 31, was the ringleader of a plot to murder his love rival, Thomas Campbell
Mr Campbell’s bloodied and near-naked body was found in his hallway bound in extra-strength duct tape
Coleen Campbell (pictured) shared crucial details about her former husband’s movements with Belfield before his killing
In subsequent texts, Steven referred to ‘a little bit of Tommy ketchup’ while Belfield wrote: ‘All the lights on but no one at home. Actually, the lights have been smashed out of him.’
Manchester Crown Court also heard messages Belfield sent to his ex, Ms Driver, after she began a relationship with Mr Campbell.
In one he wrote: ‘You and that helmet will get domed. Shut your mouth you dog.’
In a separate exchange, Belfield wrote to Mr Campbell about Ms Driver, saying: ‘I’m going to shag her for the point of it as well as saying you like her you soft boy.’
The victim’s body was discovered by shocked neighbours the morning after his death when they noticed his front door had been left open and saw blood in the hallway.
Duct tape had been wound ‘multiple times’ around his wrists from a roll bought from a B&Q store in nearby Oldham.
Prosecutors said Belfield wanted to steal ‘items of value’ from Mr Campbell’s home and was also motivated by personal ‘hostility’ towards him.
A 2023 trial heard how his estranged wife Coleen Campbell had shared her ex’s whereabouts despite being warned that he would be robbed and ‘violence would be necessary’
Coleen Campbell was among those previously convicted in connection with Thomas Campbell’s death
Coleen is pictured outside Manchester Crown Court during an earlier hearing on a different matter in 2019
Mr Campbell was ambushed by three men as he opened his front door in Mossley, Greater Manchester
After playing the ‘perfect’ grieving widow in a series of gushing Facebook messages, she eventually exposed her involvement by describing the exact nature of Mr Campbell’s injuries to his mother – details she claimed he had relayed from the grave after being summoned by a clairvoyant.
She immediately became suspicious and alerted police.
During his own trial, Belfield admitted to earning around £2,000-a-week dealing cannabis and cocaine, but denied murdering Mr Campbell.
Questioned by his barrister Richard Wright KC, Belfield said he had known him for about ten years, saying he was ‘higher up than me’ in the drugs trade.
‘I have never had any trouble with Tom Campbell in my life,’ he insisted.
Belfield insisted that his contact with Ms Campbell over Instagram in the run-up to the murder had nothing to do with a plan to rob her ex-husband or being ‘jealous’ about his relationship with Ms Driver.
However, jurors heard how he ‘very carefully planned’ Mr Campbell’s killing by placing a tracker device on his car and carrying out reconnaissance on his home.
Mr Campbell was described by police as a drug dealer
Mr Campbell during his marriage to Coleen – proof how dramatically he changed his appearance
A picture of Belfield released by police when he was on the run. It was taken in December 2022 when he was likely already in Suriname
Belfield attacked Mr Campbell with Steven and a third man, who has not been identified.
Co-conspirator Stephen Cleworth was not present during the murder, but planted the tracker and acted as a driver.
Horrific details about the victim’s injuries were shared with jurors by forensic pathologist Dr Philip Lumb.
He said he had suffered injuries consistent with ‘restraint’, ‘asyphixia’ and a ‘sustained blunt sharp force physical assault’.
Dr Lumb also noted evidence of burning to Mr Campbell’s thigh and buttocks, which he said had been caused by a ‘hot liquid such as hot water’.
The victim had also suffered a gaping stab wound to his right upper arm, which would have bled extensively.
Reece Steven (left), 29, was convicted of murder and was jailed for life with a minimum of 37 years whilst Stephen Cleworth (right), 38, was found guilty of manslaughter and jailed for 12 years
Officers attended the property and discovered Mr Campbell’s body inside. Pictured, police at the scene
The Facebook messages Coleen Campbell posted after her ex’s murder in an effort to appear innocent
Coleen also helped arrange a balloon release in memory of her drug dealer ex – who posed as a personal trainer
Belfield was described as being of no fixed address.
He will be sentenced at Manchester Crown Court at a later date.
