A 21-year-old man has been sentenced to life imprisonment after fleeing the country in the aftermath of a fatal stabbing, leaving the victim’s devastated family to endure years of anguish and a prolonged wait for justice.
Thomas Dures, formerly of Aughton, Lancashire, was finally brought to trial and convicted for the murder of Matthew Daulby, aged just 19, who was described by his family as a loving and caring son with his whole life ahead of him. The attack occurred outside a bar in Ormskirk on 29 July 2023, with Mr Daulby succumbing to his injuries shortly afterwards at Aintree Hospital.
The court heard that following the incident, Dures made the decision to flee the United Kingdom entirely, travelling to Greece in a bid to avoid capture and prosecution. This flight meant that the Daulby family faced not only the horror of losing their son in such violent circumstances, but also the burden of waiting many months for a full accounting of the events, as well as the ordeal of two separate murder trials.
Last year, Henry Houghton, an accomplice to the fatal attack, was convicted and sentenced to a minimum of 20 years for his role in the killing. Dures, however, only returned to face justice when he ultimately handed himself in to authorities in Athens, setting in motion his own trial, which concluded last week with a unanimous guilty verdict.
In sentencing at Preston Crown Court, Judge Robert Altham did not mince his words regarding the behaviour of the defendant both before and during the trial. Describing Dures as “cowardly,” the judge highlighted his lack of remorse—observing that Dures smirked and shook his head as the victim’s mother, Angela Daulby, gave a tearful and heartfelt statement in court. Judge Altham stated, “You have never shown the slightest remorse. Having murdered Matthew Daulby, you now seek to heap further misery on his family.”
Angela and Gary Daulby, Matthew’s parents, spoke movingly about the hole left in their lives by their son’s sudden and violent death. Angela told the court that her son had been looking forward to a summer holiday in Ibiza, and that his future had seemed full of promise. The family’s pain was palpable as she said, “No parent should ever have to bury their child. It leaves you with pain I can’t even explain. You broke my heart. You have given us a life sentence of grief.”
The details of the attack, as revealed in court, painted a chilling picture. Dures and Houghton ambushed Matthew and his friends after lurking in an alleyway. Houghton first struck Matthew with a makeshift cosh, fashioned from a sock weighed down with a rock, before Dures delivered the fatal blow with a lock knife, stabbing Matthew through the chest. Afterwards, Dures discarded both the weapon and his bloodied clothing, took a selfie with a cannabis joint, and swiftly left the country the following day.
Dures was also found guilty of wounding with intent with regard to another individual during the course of events that night, underscoring the violence and chaos of the attack. The combined convictions will see him serve a mandatory life term, with a minimum of 23 years to be served before he may be considered for parole.
Detective Chief Inspector Andy Fallows of Lancashire Police expressed relief that justice had finally been served, noting that the Daulby family’s patience and resilience had been sorely tested by Dures’s attempt to escape culpability. “They had to grieve, knowing the man responsible for their son’s death was celebrating his 21st birthday in the sun,” he said. Fallows praised the work of both the investigation team and the public, whose involvement may have pressured Dures into surrendering abroad.
The sentencing brings to a close a fraught chapter for the Daulby family, but even Judge Altham recognised that nothing could truly assuage their grief. Instead, he hoped that Dures’s conviction might give the family some measure of justice for the son they lost in such a brutal and senseless manner. As the community reflects on this tragic case, questions about knife crime and support for grieving families continue to resonate across the region.