Plumstead Man Convicted for Filming Machete Attack on Father-of-Three in Revenge Plot
A 42-year-old man from South East London has been found guilty of participating in a brutal machete attack on a father-of-three, which was filmed as part of a revenge scheme linked to a prison assault. Following a nearly two-week trial at Nottingham Crown Court, the jury deliberated for just two hours before unanimously convicting Tyrone Dowdye of Herbert Road, Plumstead, for wounding with intent to cause grievous bodily harm against Lifowe Chilink.
Details of the Attack and Revenge Motive
The trial revealed that three masked men forcibly entered Mr. Chilink's home in Penrhyn Crescent, Chilwell, Nottingham, at 1:50 PM on January 26, 2022. One of the assailants slashed the victim with a machete in retaliation for his son, Judah, assaulting a prisoner at HMP Manchester. Dowdye, who denied any involvement, stood by the front door and recorded the violent incident, during which another man was heard urging the attacker to "chop him."
Prosecutor David Earl explained that while the victim was being struck with the blade, another individual encouraged the assault, and Dowdye captured it on video. The footage was later discovered on a memory stick placed on top of a prison officer's locker at HMP Manchester, where Judah Chilink was incarcerated, to prove the attack had been carried out.
Victim and Witness Accounts
In a video interview played during the trial, Mr. Chilink described the terrifying moments: "I could see silhouettes through the glass of the front door and then three masked men came bursting in. I saw one of them run into the lounge where my wife was, and he then came back into the hallway where I was. I was on the stairs, and he said 'come down, come down.' I was sure I was going to die. He came up the stairs waving a machete around, and I started to defend myself."
He detailed the weapon as having a handle about 10 cm long and a shiny, silver metal blade approximately 30 cm in length, which struck his left side repeatedly. Mr. Chilink's wife, Zebi, provided a statement to the jury, recounting how the intruders "came crashing in" while she was administering medication to their eight-year-old daughter. After the men fled, she found her husband in the hallway with severe injuries, including a deep wound to his arm, and he told her, "they have cut me everywhere."
Legal Proceedings and Sentencing
The prosecution argued that this was a premeditated revenge attack due to the incident involving Judah at HMP Manchester, with the video deliberately left at the prison to notify inmates. Dowdye, who was living in Kendal Drive, St Helens, Merseyside, at the time of the attack but is now residing in Plumstead, London, is scheduled to be sentenced on April 30. The other two men involved in the assault remain at large, and authorities continue their investigation.
This case highlights the severe consequences of retaliatory violence and the role of digital evidence in modern criminal trials, underscoring the importance of community safety and legal accountability in such heinous acts.
