A murderer who killed aristocrat Sir Richard Sutton in a frenzied knife attack before trying to do the same to his own mother has insisted he is not ‘some demonic monster’.
Thomas Schreiber (35), was sentenced by Winchester Crown Court for the murder of Anne Schreiber and attempted murder of Anne Schreiber’s mother Anne Schreiber. Anne was paralysed in the attack.
The attacker attacked Sir Richard’s Moorhill estate in Gillingham, Dorset. This was where the defendant of 35 years had lived since the split from his parents.
After his mother yelled at him about being drunk like his father, Schreiber confessed to the attack with a ‘horror-show’ knife on Schreiber and the couple on the 8th anniversary of David Schreiber’s death.
In the trial, it was revealed that the defendant had been angry at his mother for leaving his depression-stricken father to live with him. He also accused his mother of being a “gold-digging bitch”.
Schreiber also felt that Sir Richard treated him unfairly compared with his two sisters, despite him receiving a £1,000 monthly allowance and being given £100,000 towards buying a house.
Thomas Schreiber (pictured), 35 stabbed Sir Richard Sutton in the stomach with a kitchen knives at the Baronet’s country house near Gillingham.
According to the trial, the defendant was angry at his mother because he ‘abandoned’ his father who had suffered from depression in order to live with Sir Richard.
According to the court, family disputes had descended into violence three times before, with Sir Richard hitting Schreiber in November 2020 with his walking stick, leaving Schreiber “humiliated” and the cane shattering.
According to the court, the defendant suffered from depression and blamed lockdown on his mental illness by being forced into Sir Richard’s estate’s ‘toxic pressure boiler environment’.
Schreiber wrote to Mr Justice Garnham in a note before Monday’s sentencing. He stated: “I am writing you to express my deepest shame and complete disgust at my actions and words on April 7th towards my family Ann and Richard.”
“All that I want to do is go back in time and make everything right so I can bring my mother back and Richard back into life.
He tried to also murder Anne Schreiber his mother during Sir Richard’s April knife attack.
Thomas Schreiber, pictured here with his mother, stabbed Sir Richard Sutton to death after he had been sponging off him for many years. It was a violent attack that left the hotelier with blood everywhere but his bedroom.
Ms. Schreiber sustained up to 15 injuries to her head, body and spinal cord. This left her paralysed.
“This is what I am thinking about every day for the past 8 months.
“Through my actions, I have destroyed both my family and the Sutton families.
“In spite of not being able to get along with each other all the time, regardless what you might think, I do truly love my mother, my family, and everyone in it.
“Despite not getting along with Richard’s family as well, I did not intend to ever hurt their father. He has always been kind and caring about me, and I have never had any problems.
“I truly hope that you understand it.
Thomas Schreiber’s sister Louisa photographed outside Winchester Crown Court, Friday
Schreiber had also plead guilty to dangerous driving of a Range Rover on the A303 and A4 when he didn’t stop for armoured police following a 135mph pursuit through central London.
“By not asking for help directly and being honest about my destructive thoughts toward my family, I have only made the problem worse for myself and for my family.
“I was a cowardly, arrogant, and selfish person. This is a terrible mistake. I regret it. I wish that I could have had as much clarity about these issues back then.
I most definitely did not plan to harm anyone. It is a shock to me that I was able to do such horrible things. This, I should remind you, is not who I am, as an adult, or my son, to my family.
“I’m desperate to fix this, and I want to return to the day that it was.”
“The past four years have been very difficult for me, but I tried and failed to manage my problems as privately as possible. My failures are not my fault.
‘Finally, my mother’s and Richard’s recovery is my prayer. I hope this will be a sign that they realize it wasn’t the devil’s work but that someone desperately in need of professional assistance.