Couple jailed for life for abusing and murdering a vulnerable man in their care

Kenneth Newton and Melanie James had filmed themselves mocking Rubin Blount, who was left to lie in his own urine and weighed 40kg when he died

A couple convicted of murder after inflicting “deliberate cruelty” on a vulnerable 28-year-old man in their care, who weighed just 40kg (6st 4lb) at the time of his death, have been jailed for life.

Rubin Blount was made to stand for long periods of time, left to lie in his own urine and forced to eat out of bins by his stepbrother Kenneth Newton and Newton’s partner, Melanie James, at an address in Tamworth, Staffordshire, Stafford crown court heard.