Brothers Sentenced to Life for 1984 Murder of Civil Servant in London

Michael Stewart, 57, and Anthony Stewart, 60, were sentenced to life imprisonment at the Old Bailey on Monday for the 1984 murder of civil servant Anthony Littler. Michael Stewart received a minimum term of 10 years and Anthony Stewart a minimum term of 15 years. The attack occurred on May 1, 1984, in East Finchley, north London.

m. after attending a meeting of the Ponds Branch of The Society for the Preservation of Beer from the Wood at a pub in Carshalton, Surrey. He suffered a catastrophic brain injury and was found half an hour later by members of the public, still carrying his briefcase, £80 cash and credit cards.

By spring 1984 the Stewart brothers and their friends had made a hobby of targeting lone men they believed to be gay. Michael Stewart anonymously called for an ambulance from a phone box within minutes of the attack but hung up, leading police to call off the search.

During house-to-house inquiries the brothers claimed to be at home at the time, with Anthony Stewart stating he never used the alley where the attack occurred.

Appeals on BBC Crimewatch and ITV’s Police 5 produced no meaningful leads and the case remained unsolved for decades. ” Years after the killing Michael Stewart admitted his guilt to a girlfriend and showed her the location of the attack. In 2022 police reopened the investigation and used covert techniques including bugging the brothers’ cars and Michael’s home.

Michael Stewart was described as having a “loose tongue” and bragged about the 1984 attack during the covert recordings. Both brothers, from north London, denied involvement and declined to give evidence. An Old Bailey jury found them guilty of murder after deliberating for less than three hours on Monday.