DETECTIVES scoured hours of CCTV footage to piece together the movements of Marty Bates the night he brutally murdered his friend John Littlewood.
The 31-year-old let himself into Mr Littlewood's Blackhall Colliery home in the early hours of July 26, 2019, before launching the fatal and sustained attack on his prone victim.
Today, he was jailed for a minimum of 24-years for the callous murder when he appeared at Teesside Crown Court.
Judge Paul Watson QC, the Recorder of Middlesbrough, described the attack as 'premeditated' after persuading his friends to switch off the CCTV operating outside their house before heading to his victim's home.
Bates, of Tenth Street, Blackhall Colliery, admitted going back to the victim's house following an earlier dispute.
After sneaking in through an open rear door he climbed the stairs at launched the fatal attack on Mr Littlewood as he slept.
Detectives were praised by the judge for capturing Bates casually walking home with his top off after carrying out the sustained and violent attack on his prone friend.
The officers also managed to capture footage of the 'friends' in the hours leading up to Mr Littlewood's vicious murder.
The 36-year-old father of two's lifeless body was found in his bed by his on-off partner on the evening of Tuesday, July 30.
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