Thug who led 'counter attack' which culminated in the murder of dad-to-be Charlie Elms is jailed
A thug who led a 'counter attack' which culminated in the murder of a young dad-to-be in the street has been locked up.
Melvin Whelan, 39, burst out of a house and launched a bottle of beer towards a gang, who had attacked a house.
Minutes later, Charlie Elms, 25, was stabbed to death by 17-year-old Karl Marler.
READ MORE : 'Give me all the money or I will shoot you': Terrifying moment gunman raided Natwest
The explosion of violence in Oldham came after an 'utterly pointless' feud between two rival groups.
A tit-for-tat dispute came to a head on May 26, when Charlie and five other men arrived in the town's Limeside estate.
Charlie was armed with a machete, and others also had weapons.
Manchester's courts are some of the busiest in the country with a vast array of cases heard every week.
To keep up to date with how justice is being served across Greater Manchester subscribe to our free weekly M.E.N. Court News newsletter put together by our court reporters Andrew Bardsley and Amy Walker.
Shocking footage shows the gang attack a house, with one hacking at the front door with a machete.
A scooter was also thrown at the property.
Whelan can then be seen emerging from the house, wearing a navy blue T-shirt, throwing a bottle of beer towards the attackers before charging towards a car and kicking it.
Marler, who would go on to knife Charlie to death, also emerged, wearing a camouflage jacket.
The gang retreated to the blue Vauxhall Corsa they arrived in.
Four of Charlie's group were able to flee in the Corsa, leaving Charlie and another man called Josh Newport behind.
Marler then chased Charlie and Newport down the street.
Newport was able to get away, but Charlie slipped as he ran for his life.
Moments later, Marler plunged a
Read more on manchestereveningnews.co.uk
