A grieving mum has spoken of her “twisted feelings of anger and hatred” towards a teenager who shot her son to death over a trivial argument outside a petrol station.
Sue Wilson’s emotional reaction comes as Bradley Blundell was sentenced to life imprisonment with a minimum term of 22 years for the killing outside the Shell garage by the Army and Navy flyover in Chelmsford in August 2017.
Blundell, then aged 16, left John Pordage dying in the street after gunning him down when angered by flirtatious comments the victim or his friend allegedly made towards one of the teenager’s friends, Ella Colgate.
Blundell fled the scene and then went on the run, sparking a large-scale manhunt before eventually handing himself in to police in Amsterdam on March 31 and was detained under a European arrest warrant.
‘Evil and calculated’ killer left my son to die
Mrs Wilson said after the sentencing on Friday, January 25: “About 30 seconds was all it took for my entire world to be thrown into turmoil on August 5, 2017 when a 16-year-old boy and Bradley Blundell - armed with a cosh and a gun - attacked my son John.
“Since that day I have been so consumed with the twisted feelings of anger and hatred that I have struggled to function, let alone grieve for my son Johnny.
“Blundell and his pathetic little ‘gang’ have even stolen my memories of John, as I have not been able to think about him without thinking of them, all their planning, escapes and covering their tracks, making me feel the bitterness I’ve become so familiar with.
“Since the word ‘guilty’ was repeated for all of the indictments against Blundell and Colgate, I have felt an overwhelming sense of relief.
“Blundell is evil and calculated. He left my son to die after shooting him in the heart.
“My son was murdered by a senseless, cruel hooligan that thought it was okay to go out with weapons and take an innocent person’s life.
“I will never again be able to feel the brightness that he brought to this world.
“My family and I will never be able to move on from this, but I am hopeful that we leave court today feeling that we have achieved justice for John.”
Blundell was sentenced to three years for conspiracy to pervert the course of justice, three years for the drugs offences, two years and nine months for the bladed article offences and six months for failing to appear at court.
These will run concurrently to the sentence he received for murder.
Co-defendant Ella Colgate, who had driven Blundell to and from the scene of the shooting, was convicted of conspiracy to pervert the course of justice last month.
Colgate, 18, of Aldridge Close, Chelmsford, was jailed for 12 months.
‘He killed a part of me’
John’s sister Teri Pordage added: “My life will truly never be the same after losing my brother.
“It’s not just my brother Blundell killed, he killed a part of me.
“My mother will never be the same and I will go on through life having to know that she will always be sad and hurting inside.
“My brother was my everything. We were so close, there was such a bond between us. We spent many hours talking about travelling culture and art.”
A happy man with a ‘beautiful future’
Family of John Pordage have paid tribute to him as someone with “infectious happiness” who “changed the atmosphere of whichever room he walked into”.
Mrs Wilson said: “He would turn up with that cheeky smile and flood you with his positive attitude and affection.
“John had a great collection of friends, some since the age of nine. Watching them carry my John’s coffin at his funeral was the most heart-breaking moment and one which now defines the rest of my life without him.
“John was always looking ahead, planning for his future, setting a five-year plan. He had just moved into a house in an area near town that he wanted with his girlfriend Daisy, the start of a beautiful future.”
More people charged
Three further people will be summonsed to appear at court next month.
This is in connection with the recovery of firearms and ammunition during searches carried out in Chelmsford in the early stages of the investigation into Mr Pordage’s murder.
A 17-year-old boy from Leigh-on-Sea and a 20-year-old man from Ingatestone will face two counts of possession of a prohibited weapon, three counts of possession of prohibited ammunition, and one count of conspiracy to pervert the course of justice.
A 24-year-old man from Chelmsford will face three counts of possession of a prohibited weapon, two counts of possession of prohibited ammunition, and one count of conspiracy to pervert the course of justice.
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