Luton man jailed for murdering victim after money dispute

A man convicted of murdering a registered sex offender has been told he must spend at least 20 years in jail.

Nathaniel Sereaton, 43, was found guilty of murdering 57-year-old Sukhjinder Singh-Gill at the victim’s home in Luton.

Prosecutors said Sereaton had drug debts and had “tried to get money” from his victim.

At Luton Crown Court on Wednesday, a judge handed Sereaton, of Milliners Court, Luton, a mandatory life term with a minimum of 20 years in prison before parole could be considered.

During Sereaton’s trial earlier this summer, prosecutor Richard Christie KC said Mr Singh-Gill was strangled and was found dead at his bedsit in Althorpe Road in November 2024.

Jurors were told the victim had severe heart disease, lived alone and had learning difficulties.

The victim had a cord wrapped around his hands and neck, and police initially thought Mr Singh-Gill had died by suicide.

Judge John Hillen said: “It was a terrible act of violence, using not only your bare hands but a weapon that came to hand.”

Mr Christie had told the judge that Mr Singh-Gill was “particularly vulnerable” because of his age and health condition.

He said the defendant had returned to the scene to create a “fake suicide” scenario, which initially fooled police; “tried to get money” from Mr Singh-Gill; and had stolen a mobile phone.

Sereaton had a “psychiatric history” which was largely “cocaine induced”, the prosecutor added.

Jurors were told the father-of-five was “extremely muscly”, had been involved in martial arts and was a free running coach.

Giving evidence, Sereaton said he got angry after Mr Singh-Gill offered him money for sex and grabbed him around the neck.

He wanted to stop Mr Singh-Gill doing “what he was doing”, the defendant told jurors.

Sereaton said he was “close” to the victim, never intended to harm him, and had stayed with his family for “a while” when he was younger.

Mr Christie said Sereaton had 19 convictions dating back to 2001 for crimes including robbery, burglary and drug supply.

He also had mental health problems, he explained.

Mr Singh-Gill, on the other hand, had a history of sex offending dating back to the early 1980s, Mr Christie added.

These included indecent assaults on males and females, and the prosecutor said he was placed on the sex offenders register in 2002.

Mr Singh-Gill’s relatives had told the judge, in a victim impact statement, how they had endured a “difficult year”.

“We have no choice but to move forward with our lives,” they said.

“Big bro, we are going to miss you so much.”

They praised police involved in the inquiry as “nothing but amazing”.