Robert Jadecki was punched, kicked and stamped on in a violent and unprovoked attack, police say.
A man who murdered a homeless man while he was asleep in his sleeping bag has been jailed for a minimum of 27 years.
Grant Richard Harding, 30, was convicted in August of killing Robert Jadecki, who he attacked on Hester Street in Northampton in the early hours of 16 June 2021.Northamptonshire Police said it had been a "violent and unprovoked attack". Harding was given a life sentence. The force added that Harding, who lived in the same street, punched, kicked and stamped on the victim, all while shouting abuse at him.
Police said that at a sentencing hearing at Northampton Crown Court, Judge Adrienne Lucking had confirmed the minimum term reflected the fact the attack was racially motivated and that Mr Jadecki was Polish.Det Sgt Robert Gray, from the East Midlands Special Operations Unit, said Mr Jadecki was a "mild-mannered man who was well-thought of in the local community" as well as by the Hope Centre, a Northampton shelter for the homeless.
"Being homeless does not make Robert's death any less important than anyone else's, and again, we really want to highlight this point," he said."He didn't deserve to die, and I am pleased that we have been able to give him the justice he deserves."