Australia: Man gets four years for dismembering dealer

A man has been sentenced to at least four years in jail by a Sydney court for killing his drug dealer in a psychotic rage.

In February 2003, Matthew Gagalowicz fatally bashed Ricky Mark Smith with a baseball bat.

He then dismembered his body and buried it in the backyard of his house at Bulli, south of Sydney.

The court was told the 21-year-old began taking amphetamines when he was still at school and was in a drug-induced psychosis when he killed Mr Smith.

He was found not guilty of murder, but guilty of manslaughter

Today in the Supreme Court in Sydney, Gagalowicz was sentenced to a maximum of eight years in jail, with a non-parole period of four years.

Newshawk: http://www.napnt.org/amphetablog.html
Pubdate: Fri, 08 July 2005
Source: Australian Broadcasting Corporation (Australia Web)
Copyright: 2005 Australian Broadcasting Corporation
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