Three teenagers who attacked a man and left him for dead on a Kent beach have been locked up.
Alexander Cashford was killed on August 10 last year in Leysdown, on Sheppey, after being lured there by the defendants, who went on to chase and assault him.
Mr Cashford was declared dead on August 10, 2025. Picture: Kent Police
Today, the eldest boy and girl were both locked up for seven years, and the third boy was sentenced to five years.
As the trio left the dock, the girl was crying hysterically, and the youngest boy could be seen wiping his eyes.
Following a month-long trial at Woolwich Crown Court earlier this year, the 16-year-old girl and two boys, aged 16 and 15, were acquitted of Mr Cashford’s murder.
However, the jury of six men and six women found the female defendant and the youngest child guilty of manslaughter.
The older boy had previously accepted responsibility for Mr Cashford’s death and admitted the same charge on the third day of the trial.
The court heard that Mr Cashford had met the female defendant “by chance” at Playtime Arcade on The Promenade on August 8, and gave her his phone number.
Pretending to be a 16-year-old girl called “Sienna”, the trio then exchanged around 75 messages with the victim over the course of two days.
They arranged to meet him at the seafront on August 10, and once there, lured him “away from the crowds” before attacking him and calling him a paedophile.
The court heard the older boy hit Mr Cashford over the head with a glass bottle, before later throwing rocks at his unresponsive body.
Today (April 30), all three defendants have been sentenced at the Old Bailey by High Court judge Mrs Justice Cheema-Grubb.
Prosecutor Kate Blumgart KC told the court that although all three defendants are of previous good character, there was “obvious premeditation and planning”.
She added that the offences were aggravated by the use of a weapon, and the fact that they lured Mr Cashford “away from the crowds” before attacking him.
A victim impact statement from Mr Cashford’s parents, David and Linda, was read into the court by Ms Blumgart, which said their only son was taken from them in a “cruel and violent way”,
They added: “Alex was a son, a brother and an uncle. He was a kind, friendly and compassionate person who cared about the local animals and wildlife.
Mr Cashford handed the female defendant his business card at Playtime Arcade. Picture: CPS
“How can words describe the pain of losing a member of your family. The impact is practically impossible to put into words. We are all devastated.”
They also described the “slander” that has been pitted against their son, and their family, and said it “could not be further from the truth”.
Another statement was also read into the court from Mr Cashford’s sister, Emma Gould, who has a six-year-old son.
It said: “How do I tell him he will never see his Uncle Alex again. I am forced to feel I can only lie to him to cover the cruel and violent way he was taken.
“I have to watch my parents suffer the pain of losing a child. I have found it difficult as I am currently living in Norway.”
Speaking on behalf of the 16-year-old boy, Danny Moore KC, told the court that the defendant understands that “nothing will restore what has been taken” from Mr Cashford’s family.
Mr Moore added: “He has reflected deeply on the consequences. He does feel genuine remorse for what he did.”
Mitigating, he explained that the teenager had a “hard” start in life, and is diagnosed with autism and ADHD, which impacts his consequential thinking and decision making.
He said this incident was “completely out of character”, and he has no previous convictions or cautions, like all the defendants in this case.
Speaking on behalf of the 16-year-old girl, Danny Robinson echoed that she is “deeply remorseful for Mr Cashford’s death and her actions that led up to the incident”.
He explained that, although undiagnosed, it is probable that the defendant has autism and anxiety, and that she has limited emotional and social development.
Mr Robinson also said that she did not use a weapon and did not know one had been brought until the offence had begun.
The two boys were walking behind Mr Cashford and the female defendant minutes before he was attacked. Picture: CPS
Meanwhile, representing the youngest defendant, Benjamin Newton asked Mrs Justice Cheema-Grubb to consider a youth rehabilitation order for his client rather than a custodial sentence.
He told the court that the boy has already been in detention for nine months and any further time would be “counterproductive” to his future.
He claimed that the teenager, who was 14 at the time, played a “minor role” and did not continue chasing Mr Cashford after the initial, recorded attack, or “arm himself”.
He added: “He has learnt lessons from what took place.”
Sentencing the trio, Mrs Justice Cheema-Grubb referred to them by their initials: the 16-year-old girl as T, the eldest boy as S and the youngest as O.
She said: “It was an appalling incident and a senseless loss of life. He gave you his business card; that was all he did. He did not touch you.”
The High Court judge said that “it was shocking” that T had filmed the attack, and that the five minutes that followed “must have been terrifying for Mr Cashford”.
She added: “His family has had to endure the publicity of this case. His death will be a source of sorrow for a long time.
“If you had not attacked this man, he would not have died on that day in that place.”
The judge went on to say that what may have started as “a bit of mischief while on holiday” turned “dangerous” and “took a man’s life”.
However, she said that the group planned to harm Mr Cashford, who lived with his parents, and they were mature enough to know the difference between right and wrong.
She added: “This was unacceptable violence. You all planned to trap and harm this man.”
Mrs Justice Cheema-Grubb locked the two 16-year-olds up for seven years, while the youngest defendant was detained for five years.
They will all serve half their sentence before being let out on licence, and the time already served will be taken into consideration.
She added: “You are all young, and you will still be young. You did a terrible thing, and you are paying the price for it.
“It is up to you to choose how you will live.”
Speaking afterwards, Detective Sergeant Alastair Worton said: “Alexander Cashford ‘s life was cut short following a vicious attack carried out by a group of teenagers who plotted to meet him under false pretences.
”The devastating outcome of the offenders’ brutal actions that day has left a family grieving the loss of a loved one and young lives changed forever.
”The sentencing imposed on the offenders reflects the conspiratorial nature of their behaviour and the tragic consequences of their crime.
”I would like to thank again the witnesses whose evidence helped secure the convictions in this case, and I hope that the sentences that have now been announced can be of some comfort to Alex’s family as they continue to come to terms with their loss.”
Mr Cashford first met the female defendant “by chance” at Playtime Arcade on The Promenade on August 8, when he sat beside her at the fruit machines.
The trio were sentenced at the Old Bailey. Stock picture
The interaction only lasted about 45 seconds, but he handed her his business card with his number on it before walking away.
The girl then met up with the other two defendants and several other youngsters, and the group used the older boy’s phone to send their first message to Mr Cashford.
Pretending to be a 16-year-old girl called “Sienna”, they exchanged around 75 messages with the victim over the course of two days.
The court previously heard that Mr Cashford, of Moor Street, Rainham, said “her age did not put him off” and that he thought she was “really pretty” and wanted to kiss her.
The police do not know which of the defendants was controlling the phone during the interactions, but explained that the 49-year-old had no way of contacting them if they had not messaged first.
Regardless, the trio arranged to meet Mr Cashford near Love Fish on the seafront on August 10 at 6.45pm.
Mr Cashford was chased along the seafront. Picture: CPS
CCTV then captured Mr Cashford and the female defendant walking along the coastal path towards Warden Bay at around 7pm, while being followed by the two boys.
Ten minutes later, the group launched their attack and chased the unemployed electrician along the footpath while the 16-year-old boy hit him over the head with a bottle.
The assault was recorded by the girl, who was heard shouting “f***ing paedophile” and “get him, f***ing nonce”.
In his evidence, the youngest teenager, who was 14 at the time, claimed he was not involved in the plan to attack Mr Cashford, and that he only went along to make sure the girl was safe.
Following the initial attack, the three defendants continued to pursue the victim to an isolated and rocky area near The Warden Bay pub, where he fell to the ground.
Multiple eyewitnesses told the court they saw the older boy throwing rocks and kicking Mr Cashford as he lay unresponsive and face down in the mud.
The defendants filmed their initial attack on Mr Cashford. Picture: CPS
Read more: Everything we know about the events that led to Alexander Cashford’s death
Giving evidence, the 16-year-old boy admitted he wanted to hurt the unmarried man, but said he did not want to seriously injure him.
Despite the efforts from passersby and medical professionals, Mr Cashford was declared dead just after 8pm, a little over an hour after he met the defendants.
His precise cause of death was not determined, but the court heard he could have died from severe chest injuries, which included several fractured ribs and a collapsed lung.
It is also believed that Mr Cashford, who liked visiting parks in Medway to feed the ducks, suffered a cardiac arrest brought on by the assault, which was not helped by his underlying heart disease.
The trio were arrested by police officers not long after the attack, and the court heard that during this, the girl claimed she “did not do s***”.
Mr Cashford had previously been jailed. Picture: Kent Police
Meanwhile, the 16-year-old boy, who was 15 at the time, said if he had “wanted to kill him, [he] would have”, before asking how long he might get.
It is understood that the trio, who are from London but had been staying at nearby caravan parks, became friends a few days before the attack.
There was no evidence that Mr Cashford, who was his parents’ only son, had any previous convictions relevant to this case, but he had been spared jail for stalking.
KentOnline previously reported he had been accused of following a young woman home from work and visiting her house in the early hours.
Appearing at Medway Magistrates’ Court in March 2025, he admitted a charge of stalking involving serious alarm and distress and was placed on a month’s curfew and fitted with a tag.
On August 10, Mr Cashford would have still been subject to the tag’s rules, which required him to be at his home address in the evenings.
In 2014, he was also jailed for three years and four months after pleading guilty to multiple counts of theft from vehicles.
None of the youths can be identified due to being under the age of 18.