Tony Martin, the farmer whose killing of burglar sparked national debate

Farmer Tony Martin, who has died astatine the property of 80, sparked a nationalist statement aft helium was jailed for shooting dormant a teenage burglar successful 1999.

He was privately educated astatine Glebe House School successful Hunstanton past astatine Cokethorpe Park adjacent Oxford, leaving schoolhouse astatine 17.

Speaking successful 2000, his mother, Hilary Martin, said: “Guns were 2nd quality to him. He grew up connected a workplace wherever determination were ever guns. His begetter loved shooting and was a bully shot.

“But Tony ne'er truly liked shooting. He didn’t truly similar the thought of killing.

“He didn’t similar animals to beryllium killed. When helium got his ain place, which is present a spot of a messiness admittedly, helium wanted it to beryllium a vertebrate sanctuary.

“Whereas each the others, his cousins and everyone, were ever shooting, helium ne'er took to it.”

After school, Martin did a assortment of jobs, including moving arsenic a steward connected liners, connected lipid rigs disconnected Scotland and moving a piggery astatine his parents’ farm.

Inspired by an uncle, Martin besides spent respective years travelling.

His parent added: “He did not person a convulsive nature. I person never, ever known him beryllium progressive successful fights. He was a nice, affable young man.

“I deliberation helium is the benignant of idiosyncratic who would basal up for himself but helium was ne'er violent.”

Martin was surviving unsocial astatine his farmhouse, nicknamed Bleak House, erstwhile helium caught Brendan Fearon, past 29, and Fred Barras, 16, wrong connected August 20 1999.

He fired his shotgun 3 times towards the intruders, sidesplitting Barras.

The lawsuit provoked a nationalist statement astir the measures homeowners tin instrumentality to support their property.

He was initially recovered blameworthy of murder, but this was reduced to manslaughter connected appeal. Martin spent a full of 3 years successful prison.

In 2003 helium accepted an connection from Nottinghamshire burglar Fearon, whom helium changeable and wounded, to driblet a assertion for damages.

After his release, Martin received a lasting ovation erstwhile helium addressed the Ukip yearly league successful 2003.

Martin’s friend, Malcolm Starr, told the PA quality bureau that the husbandman tried “to transportation connected arsenic normal” aft his merchandise from prison.

Mr Starr said: “He tried to transportation connected arsenic normal, immoderate mean was to Tony. I deliberation astir of the farm, helium sub-contracted.

“He didn’t bash overmuch of that himself, but helium conscionable liked gathering people. He was bully connected history, helium liked past books and that benignant of thing.”

Mr Starr added: “I recovered him precise eccentric erstwhile I initially met him.

“I met him due to the fact that helium supported the information I’d enactment a readying exertion successful to demolish the constabulary presumption due to the fact that it closed astatine 8pm and wasn’t immoderate bully if you wanted to study a crime.

“That got rather a batch of publicity, and Tony picked up connected it, came to sojourn maine astatine my bureau connected a tractor, which I thought was a small spot unusual.

“And yes, he’s eccentric, but a mates of months later, determination was a shooting, and it was him.

“He phoned maine up from Norwich situation and said: ‘Would you woody with each my affairs?’ Which I tried to do, and I dealt with the property connected his behalf arsenic well.”

Martin told PA successful 2013 that helium had erstwhile again confronted a burglar astatine the property.

Speaking astir the incident, Martin said helium was visiting the shed erstwhile helium saw a antheral attempting to bargain car batteries.

He said: “There were weapons wrong the shed so, if I had wanted to combat him off, I could have.

“I wished I had but, aft everything I’ve been done successful the past, I conscionable couldn’t look each that hassle again.

“It isn’t the archetypal clip it’s happened since I’ve been retired of situation – it’s happened 2 oregon 3 times.

“I haven’t changed my views astir what happened successful 1999 but the full acquisition has made maine suffer religion successful the strategy and I didn’t privation to beryllium made retired arsenic the transgression again.”

Martin said astatine the clip that helium had suffered from slump successful caller years and events since his condemnation had highlighted the dangers that radical surviving successful agrarian areas tin face.

Martin was arrested successful January 2016 connected suspicion of possessing an amerciable firearm aft a constabulary hunt of his home.

Norfolk Police subsequently said helium would look nary further enactment implicit the arrest.

Martin died connected February 2 aged 80 aft suffering a changeable successful December 2024.