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The brutal killer who was trapped when he ditched his victim's mobile phone, was jailed for life today.
Heartless Harry Harris, 29, stabbed dad-of-one Jamie Webb, 44, seven times after the two fell out over a £2,000 cocaine debt.
But after leaving Mr Webb to die at his home in Northfleet, he fled with two mobile phones.
A jury at Maidstone Crown Court heard that one of Mr Webb's phones has never been found
But the second was casually tossed from Harris' car as he fled the scene back to his home in Essex.
By good fortune it was found by a schoolboy who thought it came from a car accident which had happened just yards away and handed it to police.
Detectives were able to retrieve details of the breakdown between Harris and his drug dealer. And after a six-week trial the jury rejected Harris' claim that he was acting in self defence.
He sat impassively in the dock as victim impact statements were read from Mr Webb's mother Linda Munroe and his former partner Andrea Bruce.
It was revealed that just hours before his death, West Ham fan Mr Webb had visited his mother who was celebrating her birthday.
She wrote: "He did not always make the best decisions but he was a good soul. He saw the best in people."
Ms Bruce, the mother of his 10-year-old son, said that despite the break up, he had always been a loving father who doted on the child who he described as "a mini-me and side kick".
The only time Harris bowed his head down was when the court heard that Mr Webb's son had expressed compassion for one of Harris' children.
Ms Bruce revealed her child "fell to the floor screaming" after being told of the tragedy and has lost his love of football, which he shared with his dad.
Now Judge Philip Statman has ruled that Harris will have to serve a minimum of 24 years before he can apply for parole.
He said: "You armed yourself with a knife and then launched a vicious and sustained attack on Mr Webb."
The judge added that when he applied the pressure on Mr Webb's neck with the remote control "you knew it would kill him".
Harris had described that as he forced the TV control into his victim's neck he saw the last moments of Mr Webb's life.
"You had control of the violence in that property that night and you knew you had killed him."
Then after taking the items he made an anonymous call to the emergency services - using Mr Webb's stolen phone - to try throw detectives off the scent and then used family members to try to ditch some of the incriminating evidence.
The judge told him: "You lied to your father about what had occurred; you lied to your partner. You have little respect for telling the truth."
Cocaine-addict Harris, of, Chigwell, Essex, was arrested after officers were called to Mr Webb's flat in Hamerton Road at 2.46am.
The jury heard how he had known Mr Webb for a number of years and owed him money for drugs.
Harris had initially claimed he attended the address to pay some of the money back and spent more than three hours trying to raise the cash. The liar initially claimed he was assaulted and tied to a chair by two other men unknown to him, before he lost consciousness.
Judy Khan QC, claimed Harris had not gone to the house intending to murder his rival but had used "excessive" self-defence. She added that the cocaine-addict had been suffering from mental health issues and had been self-harming in the days before the showdown.
"You have little respect for telling the truth..."
Detective Inspector Garry Cook, of the Kent and Essex Serious Crime Directorate, said after today's sentencing: "This was a violent incident between two people who were known to each other which ended with tragic consequences.
"After a detailed investigation we did not find any evidence of any other people being at the property and it was proven Harris lied and exaggerated the situation in order to set out what he believed was a sound defence. We also found evidence to prove that he took a knife to the scene.
"It was as a result of Harris’ actions that Mr Webb lost his life and I hope today’s sentencing provides some comfort to Mr Webb’s family."
The judge praised Kent Police for its excellent work and called the case "a remarkable achievement".
He commended four officers Det Con Brent; Det Sgt Lambert, DI Cook and liaison officer Heatley.
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