A drug dealer who caused fatal injuries to a Hackney man in "an extremely violent assault" has been jailed.

Romayne Husbands, 28, of Winchester Road in Waltham Forest was found guilty of the murder of 27-year-old Jay John by a jury in July.

Husbands had pleaded guilty to a charge of possession with intent to supply crack cocaine at the start of the four-week trial at Snaresbrook Crown Court.

Ham & High: Beloved Hackney father Jay John was murdered in Dalston in an unprovoked attack.Beloved Hackney father Jay John was murdered in Dalston in an unprovoked attack. (Image: Metropolitan Police)

On Friday, October 15, he was sentenced to life imprisonment with a minimum term of 18 years.

He was sentenced to three years and four months in jail, to be served at the same time, for the drug supply charge.

The court heard how on April 25 last year, around 12.30pm, Jay was outside the communal door of a block of flats in Trinity Close, Dalston when Husbands attacked him.

Witnesses described how Husbands punched Jay in the face then stamped four to six times on his upper body area in an unprovoked attack.

Husbands was arrested in a nearby flat a short time later by officers called to the scene and was found to have discarded 59 grams of cocaine.

Jay was found unconscious but breathing and was treated by police officers and paramedics at the scene for a wound to the back of his head.

He also had facial injuries including a fractured eye socket and cuts and bruising to his face, lips and jaw.

London Air Ambulance attended and took Jay to hospital, where he died the next day.

A post mortem examination gave the cause of death as head injuries.

Detectives linked Husbands to the scene via blood found on his trainers.

Detective Sergeant Ben Dalloway of the Met’s specialist crime command said: “This was an extremely violent assault by Romayne Husbands in which he stamped on Mr John repeatedly and left him for dead.

“I would like to express my gratitude to the members of the public who witnessed this harrowing incident and had the courage to give evidence at court.

“Without your assistance this conviction would not have been possible.

"The judge in this case described Husbands as 'a callous and ruthless individual prepared to used extreme violence'.

“I am glad he will now be off the streets for a significant time where he will no longer be a danger to the public."