Corhampton Murder Case Pair Jailed For Minimum 35 and 28 Years

Two men convicted of murdering a man who was found shot dead in Corhampton in what police called a “planned assassination” have been given life sentences and will serve at least 35 and 28 years.

Aston Hannis, 30, of Leah Gardens, Eastleigh (above left) received a life sentence with a minimum term of 35 years and Charlie Statham, 30, of Crescent Close, Winchester (above right) was also jailed for life and will serve a minimum term of 28 years.

Two other men who were convicted of manslaughter in the case were also jailed. Paul White, 27, of Dyson Drive, Winchester, received a prison term of 15 years and Corin Barlow, 41, of no fixed abode, was jailed for 17 years for manslaughter and for possession of a shortened shotgun without a license.

The victim, Gurinderjit Rai, also known as G, was found dead in a car parked in a layby in Shepherds Farm Lane on Saturday July 13th 2019. The 41-year-old had been shot at close range the previous night and had died from his injuries following a dispute over the supply of drugs.

Earlier this month a jury at Winchester Crown Court unanimously found Hannis and Stratham guilty of the joint enterprise murder of Mr Rai.

The eight-week trial heard that Hannis was a drugs dealer and was in considerable debt to his supplier, Gurinderjit Rai.

On the night of Friday July 12th, Gurinderjit was lured to the layby in Corhampton to collect debt money from Hannis.

The jury heard that Hannis and Statham travelled to the layby in a recently acquired Mercedes where they met with Gurinderjit and shot him twice whilst he sat in his car.

The car was later found burnt out nearby. The shotgun was later recovered from woods in Whitchurch.

Detective Chief Inspector Dave Storey said: “Today marks the end of a long and complex investigation following the assassination of Gurinderjit Rai.

“We hope that today’s sentences give the friends and family of Gurinderjit Rai some form of closure.

“I would like to thank all the officers from across the force who worked to bring these four men to justice.”

You can read more about the case here.