A man was killed after he was crushed underneath a car when he was hounded through the streets in a ‘mob-handed’ revenge attack after he stabbed a love-rival with a knife.

Adam Thomson kicked his way into his ex-partner’s Hartlepool home and attacked her new partner, Anthony Hadfield, before being chased from the property after he suffered a stab wound to his cheek.

Hadfield called his sister Sarah Hadfield and Steven Corbett, who arrived at the scene on Sydenham Road in a Ford Focus, before the gang cornered the 30-year-old armed with knives.

Witnesses recorded the fatal incident as it occurred and detectives were able to track down CCTV footage to piece together exactly what happened in the early hours of Wednesday, January 4.

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David Lamb KC, prosecuting, Sarah Hadfield made two attempts at hitting the father-of-one with her car before finally finding her target on the third attempt as they chased him through the streets.

“What followed was a “mob-handed hounding of Adam by all three defendants with the intention of harming him,” he added.

“The two on foot and Sarah in her car, begin to close in on him. Adam elects to make a run for it across the front of the Focus. Adam hit the bumper, which propelled him onto the bonnet and then he fell onto the road.

“The car went over Adam Thomson and he was dragged underneath the vehicle.”

The Northern Echo: Adam ThomsonAdam Thomson (Image: Cleveland Police)

Footage then showed the different members of the gang trying to push the car off the trapped Mr Thomson before fleeing the scene as police arrived.

Detectives were able to recover footage of them as they ran through the streets and piece together their actions.

Hadfield and Corbett were spotted dropping their knives into rubbish bins as they made their way home from the scene. At one point, Corbett was recorded hiding behind a low wall as police cars were scouring the area looking for the suspects.

DNA from the recovered knives included traces of Anthony Hadfield’s blood alongside that of Mr Thomson, and fingerprints belonging to Corbett.

A post-mortem examination revealed that Mr Thomson died of respiratory difficulties after becoming trapped underneath the Ford Focus.

Sarah Hadfield’s barrister, John Elvidge KC, says that she pleaded guilty to manslaughter on the basis that she chased Adam Thomson on Sydenham Road, in her car.

He said: “She was driving the car when it collided with him at low speed. She says she braked as soon as it hit him and she did not intend to cause him serious harm.”

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Peter Makepeace KC, representing Anthony Hadfield, said his client was initially under attack from Mr Thomson and was at home minding his own business but accepted that ‘provocation’ was not a defence for what happened once they started chasing their victim.

While Dapinder Singh KC, representing Corbett, said his client was carrying a knife but did not use it at any point and went on the run for five-days as he was ‘petrified’ of the consequences from what happened on that night.

Mr Thomson's killers, Ms Hadfield, 35, of Brenda Road, Hartlepool; Anthony Hadfield, 40 of Wensleydale Street, Hartlepool; and 31-year-old Corbett, of Brenda Road, Hartlepool, pleaded guilty to manslaughter on the day their trial was due to start last week.

The judge will pass sentence this afternoon.