Six men jailed over Derby stabbing of Dale Martin, 21, in planned masked attack
Six men have been jailed for the June 2025 killing of Dale Martin, 21, who was dragged from his car and stabbed in Derby. One was convicted of murder and five of manslaughter, and the court heard the attack was planned.
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The story, neutrally told
Right · 2Six men were jailed for the killing of Dale Martin, 21, who was dragged from his car and stabbed to death on Stenson Road in Derby on 15 June 2025. Daily ExpressR “Dale Martin, 21, was brutally murdered on Stenson Road in Derby on June 15, 2025.” Read at Daily Express ↗ Daily MailR “Dale Martin, 21, was dragged out of his car and murdered in Derby on June 15 last year” Read at Daily Mail ↗ Right · 2Jayden Mannion-Roberts, 26, was found guilty of murder and given a life sentence with a minimum term of 27 years. Five others, all from Derby, were convicted of manslaughter. Daily ExpressR “Jayden Mannion-Roberts, 26, given a life sentence, with a minimum term of 27 years, for murder. Five others, all from Derby, were found guilty of manslaughter” Read at Daily Express ↗ Daily MailR “Jayden Mannion-Roberts was found guilty of murder and jailed for life with a minimum term of 27 years.” Read at Daily Mail ↗ Right · 2Ki Grant-Finlayson, 23, received 18 years, with a three-year extended licence, and the Daily Express says he played a "leading role". Shaylon McCalla, 27, also received 18 years with a three-year extended licence, and Keenan Hamblett, 27, received 17 and a half years. Daily ExpressR “Ki Grant-Finlayson, 23, was handed an 18-year jail term, with a three-year extended licence on release for playing a "leading role" in the ambush.” Read at Daily Express ↗ Daily MailR “Grant-Finlayson was jailed for 18 years while Hamblett was sentenced to 17 years and six months in prison.” Read at Daily Mail ↗
Right · 2Kayin Holmes, 25, was jailed for 15 years and Kelci Thompson, 19, for 10 years, both to be served in a young offenders institution. Judge Gregory Dickinson KC called them "enthusiastic participants", according to the Express. The Mail says the sentences total more than 100 years. Daily ExpressR “Judge Gregory Dickinson KC also handed "enthusiastic participants" in the attack, Kayin Holmes, 25, 15 years, and Kelci Thompson, 19, 10 years, to be served in a young offenders institution.” Read at Daily Express ↗ Daily MailR “have been jailed for a combined total of more than a century.” Read at Daily Mail ↗ Right · 2The court heard the gang rode electric bikes, and in the Mail's account a moped too, into the road to block Martin's Renault Megane "in a show of force". They were armed with swords, machetes and "Rambo knives". Daily MailR “His Renault Megane was stopped by the gang's electric bikes, which were in the road 'in a show of force'.” Read at Daily Mail ↗ Daily ExpressR “He was dragged from his car before being stabbed by a group armed with swords, machetes and Rambo knives.” Read at Daily Express ↗ Right · 2CCTV showed the group surrounding Martin. They shouted "kill him, kill him" during the attack. Martin escaped, tripped on a piece of wood and was chased and attacked again. He staggered away and collapsed and died. Daily ExpressR “The gang shouted "kill him, kill him" before carrying out the "brutal, sustained and planned attack" and leaving him to die.” Read at Daily Express ↗ Daily MailR “They chased Mr Martin after he escaped but tripped on a piece of wood, attacking him 'like a pack of animals' according to a witness.” Read at Daily Mail ↗
Right · 1Prosecutors said the attack followed a history of "animosity" between rival groups from the Sinfin, Allerton and Osmaston areas, and two "tit for tat" confrontations earlier that weekend. Martin had been at a gender-reveal party and was attacked at around 11.45pm. Daily MailR “The attack on Mr Martin came after a history of 'animosity' between two rival groups in the Sinfin, Allerton and Osmaston areas and two 'tit for tat' confrontations earlier that weekend, the court heard.”“Mr Martin had gone to a gender-reveal party that evening before being attacked around 11.45pm.” Read at Daily Mail ↗ Right · 2Police arrested some of the group after the killing. The Mail says Grant-Finlayson and Hamblett were stopped before boarding a flight to Tunisia days after the murder. The Express says police body-cam footage showed two men arrested at home in their underwear and two at Gatwick Airport. Daily MailR “Ki Grant-Finlayson and Keenan Hamblett were arrested before boarding a flight to Tunisia days after the murder.” Read at Daily Mail ↗ Daily ExpressR “Police body-cam footage also showed two members of the group being arrested in their underwear at home and two others at Gatwick Airport.” Read at Daily Express ↗ Right · 2Chris Wright of Derbyshire Police described a "brutal, sustained and planned attack" by a group who set out armed with knives. The Express calls him a Detective Sergeant and the Mail a Temporary Detective Inspector. He thanked Martin's family and the public for their help. Daily ExpressR “Detective Sergeant Chris Wright, of Derbyshire Police, said after the case: "Dale Martin lost his life in a brutal, sustained and planned attack."” Read at Daily Express ↗ Daily MailR “Temporary Detective Inspector Chris Wright, of Derbyshire Constabulary, said: 'The killing of Dale Martin was a planned, sustained, and brutal attack.'” Read at Daily Mail ↗
Every sentence links to the reporting it rests on. The pill in front of each says where its sources sit: Left, Centre or Right when one side supplies at least half of them, Mixed when they are evenly split. The number is how many outlets it cites.
Left0 outlets
No left outlet in our sources has covered this story yet.
Centre1 outlet
No centre outlet in our sources has covered this story yet.
Right2 outlets
- Framing
- Both tabloids lead with the CCTV footage and the 'pack of animals' description of the ambush. They treat it as a shocking, planned killing and stress the jail terms.
- Emphasis
- The attackers' balaclavas and weapons, the 'kill him' shouts, the sentences, and police quotes. The Mail adds the Tunisia flight arrests and the 'more than 100 years' total.
- Leaves out or plays down
- Neither gives the defendants' accounts or mitigation. The Express does not name the rival areas or the prosecutor, and the Mail does not mention the Gatwick or underwear arrests. Only these two right-leaning outlets covered the story, so there is no left or centre comparison.
- Charged language
- “pack of animals”“thugs”“Horror moment”“Chilling moment”“killers”
- For example
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“The balaclava-clad thugs shouted "kill him, kill him" before carrying out the "brutal, planned and sustained attack".” — Daily Express
“Chilling moment gang corner man, 21, 'like pack of animals' and stab him to death - as killers caught trying to flee the country are jailed for total of more than 100 years” — Daily Mail
What every side reports
- Dale Martin, 21, was stabbed to death in Derby on 15 June 2025 after being dragged from his Renault Megane.
- Jayden Mannion-Roberts was convicted of murder and jailed for life with a minimum of 27 years.
- Five others were convicted of manslaughter, including Ki Grant-Finlayson (18 years) and Keenan Hamblett (17.5 years).
- The attack followed 'tit for tat' confrontations between rival groups.
- The attackers shouted 'kill him' and were armed with swords, machetes and 'Rambo knives'.
Where accounts differ
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Where arrests were made and who was arrested
- Right
- The Express says two men were arrested at home in their underwear and two at Gatwick Airport. The Mail says Grant-Finlayson and Hamblett were arrested before boarding a flight to Tunisia. The two accounts are not necessarily contradictory.
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Rank of Chris Wright
- Right
- The Express calls him Detective Sergeant. The Mail calls him Temporary Detective Inspector.
Dale Martin person
The victim, known as DJ. Coverage presents him as an ambushed young man who had been at a gender-reveal party. His family are described as supporting the investigation.
“Dale Martin, also known as DJ, was stabbed to death by a gang of masked attackers in June last year” — Daily Mail
“His family now know who is responsible” — Daily Express
Left0 articles
No coverage yet.
Centre1 article
Right2 articles
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Horror moment masked men ambush 21-year-old like 'pack of animals' and stab him to death
Alarmist Leads on the CCTV footage and 'pack of animals' ambush, with a sentence-by-sentence list and police quotes.
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Alarmist Stresses the 'chilling' footage and the combined 100-plus-year sentences, adding the failed flight to Tunisia and the court's account of the rivalry.
- 3 Oct 22:30 First Daily ExpressR Horror moment masked men ambush 21-year-old like 'pack of animals' and stab him to death
- 4 Oct 01:01 +2h 32m Daily MailR Chilling moment gang corner man, 21, 'like pack of animals' and stab him to death - as killers caught trying to flee the country are jailed for total of more than 100 years
- 4 Oct 07:23 +8h 54m BBC NewsN Father of murdered man describes trial as 'hell'
Times are when each article was published, or when we first saw it if the outlet gave no time.