Paul Kelly-Bridle, age 59, of Worcester Way, Gorleston, was today (Monday 12 December 2022) convicted by a jury of six men and six women at Norwich Crown Court of the murder of Linda Hood at her home in Cherwell Way, Gorleston, between 9 June and 12 June 2021. He was also convicted of one count of arson with intent to endanger life  on 11 June 2021. Reaching a majority decision, the jury took 10 hours and 49 minutes to reach a verdict. Kelly-Bridle had denied murder. The court heard how Linda’s neighbours reported smelling smoke and hearing a distant fire alarm from around 5am on Friday 11 June 2021 – the day her body was discovered. Shortly after 9am the same day, a woman who was visiting a relative at a nearby property heard an alarm coming from Linda’s house. There was no response at the property but smoke bellowed out when they opened the front door using a spare key. Police were called shortly after 9am on Friday 11 June 2021. Firefighters discovered Linda in the hallway of the property. She had suffered a head injury and there was a pool of blood on the floor next to her head. Sadly, despite attempts to resuscitate her, Linda was pronounced dead at 9.39am on Friday 11 June 2021. A Home Office post-mortem established she had died from compression to the neck (strangulation) with blunt force assault to the face. It also concluded there wasn’t any evidence to suggest Linda was alive when the fire started. Police launched a murder investigation. During their enquiries, officers identified a person on CCTV footage walking along Brasenose Avenue a few hours before the fire was discovered, as well as arriving and leaving Brasenose Avenue in a taxi. Detectives discovered Kelly-Bridle had booked a taxi from his home in Worcester Way to a shop in Brasenose Way at around 3.30pm on Thursday 10 June – the day before Linda’s body was discovered. The taxi driver told police that Kelly-Bridle had not gone into the shop, as arranged, and wasn’t his usual chatty self when he returned to the taxi. On Friday 11 June – the day Linda’s body was discovered – Kelly-Bridle booked another taxi to make the same journey. The driver told police they arrived shortly before 6.15am, and once again Kelly-Bridle walked past the shop on Brasenose Avenue. The driver noticed there were several £20 notes in his wallet when he returned. Kelly-Bridle was first arrested at his home on 17 June 2021 and released on police bail the following day while the investigation continued. Forensic analysis discovered Linda’s blood on one of his shoes and his DNA on Linda’s fingernails. His thumbprints were also found on the underside of the letterbox flap of Linda’s house. He was subsequently re-arrested on 29 June 2022 and charged with Linda’s murder and committing arson with intent endangering life. When questioned by detectives, Kelly-Bridle claimed he visited the shop on Brasenose Avenue to buy beer. He told detectives he hadn’t been near Linda’s house and denied seeing her on the 10 or 11 June 2021. He later told the court that he visited Linda to check she was OK but panicked when he’d found her dead in the hallway of her home, and had left the property. Following today’s conviction, Detective Chief Inspector Phill Gray said: “I am pleased with the verdict which follows a thorough and lengthy investigation, but my thoughts are with Linda’s family and friends. “Linda didn’t have any enemies and she was well-liked by people she knew within the close community of Gorleston. Her home should have been somewhere she was safe, but this was taken away by a man, her relative and a man she knew, and probably trusted, who brutally murdered her. He then tried to cover his tracks by setting fire to a chair in her home and returned the following the day to check what he had done. “Our aim is always to find the truth and find answers for the victim’s family and loved ones. I hope today’s decision offers some resolution and closure for them.” Linda’s brother Antony said: “I’d like to thank all the team from Norfolk Constabulary for all their hard work, diligence, and professionalism, as well as the Victim Support Charity. “Linda was a much-loved sister and member of the local community in Gorleston who despite her learning disabilities lived a fiercely independent life. Her life was cruelly cut short by a truly callous crime, planned and committed by Paul Kelly-Bridle. “It has been a re-affirmation of my belief in the rule of law in a democracy to see justice in action during the trial. And although, of course, this will not bring Linda back, justice has been done.” Kelly-Bridle will be sentenced at a later date.