Overview

• Mr Justice Soole imposed a life sentence with a minimum term of 18 years before Lawson can seek parole.
• Craig Yorke, 28, was stabbed three times during a group confrontation in Eldon Lane in the early hours of December 14, 2024, and died despite emergency efforts.
• Investigators recovered messages arranging a meeting at the Old Lines and videos showing Lawson with a knife, including footage of a blood-stained blade as he drove away.
• Prosecutors said two clips were posted on Snapchat, the knife has not been recovered, and further communications indicated Yorke was not the intended target.
• Lawson had admitted manslaughter but denied intending serious harm; a jury convicted him of murder after a seven-week trial, while four co-accused were acquitted.