Man found guilty of stabbing housemate to death in row over haircut in east London

Sepulveda-Garcia will be sentenced at Southwark Crown Court on Friday
CPS
Ellena Cruse18 December 2019
WEST END FINAL

Get our award-winning daily news email featuring exclusive stories, opinion and expert analysis

I would like to be emailed about offers, event and updates from Evening Standard. Read our privacy notice.

A man who stabbed his housemate to death during an argument over a haircut in east London has been found guilty of murder.

Jairo Sepulveda-Garcia, 37, attacked 32-year-old Spanish national David Lopez-Fernandez inside Pat Shaw House in Globe Road, Bethnal Green on February 25.

The three-storey building had been a care home for the elderly until it closed in 2018. At the time of the murder it was being used as a commune by a number of homeless people.

On the day of the murder, Mr Lopez-Fernandez, who had only been in the country for three weeks before his death, had knocked on Sepulveda-Garcia's door asking if he wanted a haircut.

David Fernandez Lopez was stabbed six times and had a serious wound at the back of his knee
CPS

Sepulveda-Garcia told police that an argument followed after the victim hurt him with the clippers whilst cutting his hair.

Witnesses saw Mr Lopez-Fernandez stumble out of the room before he said he had been stabbed. He then collapsed in the hallway.

Mr Lopez-Fernandez suffered six stab wounds, including a severe stab wound to the back of the knee.

The scene of the murder
CPS

Paramedics were called but despite attempts to revive him, Mr Lopez-Fernandez died at the scene.

Sepulveda-Garcia fled from the building and later handed himself in to the police.

On Wednesday, Sepulveda-Garcia was found guilty of one count of murder following a trial at Southwark Crown Court.

Sepulveda-Garcia said a row broke out after he was accidentally injured with clippers during a haircut
CPS

Cath Carrie, from the CPS, said: “This was a mindless murder over a haircut. David Lopez-Fernandez had moved to London to start a new life and this was cruelly snatched away from him.

“Mr Lopez-Fernandez had only been in the country for three weeks and was not armed when he went to Sepulveda-Garcia’s room and offered to give him a haircut. He could not have predicted the violence that would ensue.

Sepulveda-Garcia and Mr Lopez-Fernandez were flatmates at a homeless comune
CPS

“Although nothing can bring their loved one back, I hope this conviction provides some comfort to the family and friends of Mr Lopez-Fernandez.”

Sepulveda-Garcia will be sentenced at Southwark Crown Court on December 20.

Create a FREE account to continue reading

eros

Registration is a free and easy way to support our journalism.

Join our community where you can: comment on stories; sign up to newsletters; enter competitions and access content on our app.

Your email address

Must be at least 6 characters, include an upper and lower case character and a number

You must be at least 18 years old to create an account

* Required fields

Already have an account? SIGN IN

By clicking Create Account you confirm that your data has been entered correctly and you have read and agree to our Terms of use , Cookie policy and Privacy policy .

This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.

Thank you for registering

Please refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged in