William Saunderson-Smith murder: Three builders jailed for life

Three builders have been jailed for life for the murder of a multi-millionaire property developer.

William Saunderson-Smith, 58, was found in the attic bedroom of a house he was renovating in west London last October.

Slawomir Bugajewski, 39, and Dawid Rymar, 24, both of Acton, and Ireneusz Mydlarz, 37, of Edgware, each received a minimum jail sentence of 30 years.

The Old Bailey heard the men beat their victim to death as they tried to make him reveal where his money was hidden.

The men, all from Poland, fled the country after the killing but were arrested after returning to the UK.

Their trial heard that although they made off with £2,000 they missed £225,000 hidden in and around the bedroom of the West Kensington property.

A further £100,000 was found at another of Mr Saunderson-Smith's properties in Fulham.

Aftab Jafferjee QC, prosecuting, told the jury that although he was scruffy in appearance, Mr Saunderson-Smith was a very wealthy man.

"Mr Saunderson-Smith owned numerous properties, both here and abroad, and was a multimillionaire," Mr Jafferjee said.

"He had plainly retired to bed. He was obviously taken by surprise, the range and extent of his injuries being far beyond anything required merely to subdue him, which suggests a beating to get him to reveal where his money was before he was finally finished off."

The three men had worked for Mr Saunderson-Smith in the past but were not employed by him at the time of the killing, the jury heard.

Speaking after the conclusion of the trial on Friday, Det Insp John Finch, of the Homicide and Serious Crime Command, said: "Bugajewski, Rymar and Mydlarz carried out work for Mr Saunderson-Smith but they also returned to rob and kill their employer for money which they knew was hidden at the address.

"As a result of a meticulous investigation we were able to identify and arrest the three builders, who had fled the UK with the £2,000 that they had stolen.

"They have been held to account for their despicable actions and will now face jail terms."