Triple killer convicted of Cornwall murders and fatal jail attack

A TRIPLE murderer has been found guilty of killing two vulnerable men in Cornwall before strangling his cellmate to death while on remand in prison.

James Desborough, 40, murdered and dismembered Claudio Aquilino and Daniel Coleman then tried to burn and bury their remains in woodland surrounding his remote cabin home in Sticker.

Both Daniel, 43, and Claudio, 57, were homeless and had trusted Desborough as a friend. He accessed their bank accounts, spent their money and attempted to cover up his crimes after they had disappeared.

Specialist teams and forensic scientists spent five months carrying out painstaking searches of Paramoor Woods to find both victims’ remains as part of a major police operation.

After being charged with the murder of Mr Coleman and remanded in custody at HMP Exeter, Desborough strangled his cellmate Steven Kempster because he was irritated by him snoring.

A jury today [Tuesday 28 July] took just three hours to find Desborough guilty of the murders of Daniel and Claudio following a six-week trial at Winchester Crown Court.

He admitted preventing the lawful burial of both men and will be sentenced on Wednesday, July 29.

Desborough was convicted of the murder of Steven Kempster following a separate trial at Exeter Crown Court in March.

Detective Superintendent Rachael Bentley, head of Devon & Cornwall Police’s Major Crime Investigation Team, said: “The murders of Claudio Aquilino and Daniel Coleman were callous and cold-blooded. Both men were vulnerable and trusted James Desborough as their friend.

“Desborough not only brutally murdered both men, but then savagely desecrated their bodies, seeking to hide the evidence of his crimes. In doing so, he denied both men of dignity and their families of the opportunity to say goodbye.

“Desborough then set about spending their money and also sought to lay a false trail for detectives to follow in trying to convince people they were still alive.

“I would like to pay tribute to the families of Claudio and Daniel, who have conducted themselves with a quiet dignity throughout this investigation and who have had to listen to, and see, some harrowing evidence.

“This was an extremely challenging and complex investigation, which required painstaking detective work and extremely detailed forensic examination in a challenging physical environment.

“I would also like to thank all of the witnesses in this case who came forward and gave evidence, and the jury for their careful and considered attention throughout the trial.”

Daniel Coleman was reported missing on June 17, 2025 and enquiries led officers to Desborough’s woodland home.

Detectives discovered Desborough had been using Daniel’s bank card and he was initially arrested on suspicion of fraud and subsequently murder.

Daniel’s phone was found under Desborough’s mattress and his bank card and watch in a metal tin under the cabin’s decking.

Claudio Aquilino’s SIM card and gym membership card were also located in the tin and a missing person enquiry was launched to find him. Claudio’s bank card was later found in the roof space of the shack.

In the following days a shallow grave was located at the site containing human remains later confirmed to be those of Daniel.

Remains identified as being those of Claudio were found in a stream close to Desborough's cabin.

Searches also uncovered notes and drawings penned by Desborough in which he listed ‘hostiles’, said ‘I know I’m a killer’ and marked a ‘kill-zone’ on a scribbled map.

Desborough told a forensic biologist searching the woods he particularly enjoyed the dismemberment scenes in the television series Dexter.

He denied both murders, claiming he found both men dead in the woods, and felt pressured into disposing of their bodies.

Forensic scientists would go on to recover more than 1,900 burnt bone fragments from the stream.

Some of those fragments could not be identified, however, detectives and experts have no reason to believe these belong to anyone other than Claudio.

Claudio Aquilino

Detectives believe Desborough murdered Claudio Aquilino in April 2025.

Claudio’s burnt and fragmented remains were identified in the stream close to Desborough's cabin.

Forensic experts also determined Claudio’s DNA was found on an axe found hanging from a tree close to some of the remains.

Claudio was last seen alive leaving a pub in Newquay with Desborough on April 18, 2025 after which almost-daily contact with his family suddenly stopped.

He had the night before called police over concerns Desborough wanted him to help with a break-in, describing him as ‘off his head’ and ‘kamikaze’.

The court heard it was ‘no coincidence’ Desborough’s phone was switched off from April 16 to April 22, 2025.

Spending patterns from Claudio’s bank accounts also changed and transfers were made to Desborough’s own funds on six separate occasions.

Desborough was caught on CCTV using Mr Aquilino’s bank cards to withdraw cash.

On June 24, 2025, Desborough travelled to London Paddington by train and spent two-and-a-half hours in the capital before returning to Cornwall. He used Claudio’s card on the outward journey, but not on the return trip.

The court heard this was an attempt to create a false trail Claudio was still alive and had left Cornwall.

Claudio’s family said in a statement: “As a family we are completely and utterly mortified in the violent murder of Claudio and the manner in which his body was disposed.

“Claudio will always be in our thoughts and we now pray he is at peace.

“We as a family cannot thank Devon and Cornwall Police officers enough for all their support and care throughout this profoundly sad ordeal for the family. Thank you.”

Daniel Coleman

Desborough murdered Daniel Coleman on June 3, 2025 following weeks of escalating anger towards him.

A note found in Desborough's cabin headed ‘Hostiles’ contained the entry ‘Dan’ with three crosses beside it.

Daniel was last seen alive on June 3, 2025 after spending the day with Desborough in pubs in Falmouth and Truro.

Desborough used Daniel’s card to buy a handsaw, a knife, a galvanised bucket, firelighters, and gloves and attempted to burn and bury his remains in a shallow grave.

After killing Daniel, he texted an acquaintance that ‘the coast is clear’ and that there was ‘no more aggro’.

Desborough forged a note to suggest Daniel had voluntarily left the area and gone walking the Saints Trails.

The killer used Daniel’s email to book a coach journey from Penzance to Exeter on June 27, 2025 in an attempt to make it appear he was alive and had left Cornwall.

Desborough was also seen on CCTV taking a taxi to purchase fuel and a petrol can on June 26, 2025.

Daniel’s family said in a statement: “We as a family would like to thank the police, prosecution and everyone involved in getting justice for Dan.

“Dan was a loving, caring and compassionate man who will be forever loved and sadly missed.”

Search operation

An extensive and meticulous forensic police search of Paramoor Woods in Sticker ran from June 30 to November 28, 2025.

Police teams covered 5sq km of woodland and watercourses, utilising 1,136 officer deployments.

The 175-day operational period equated to a combined total of 198,800 search hours.

Of these, 96,266 hours were dedicated to the search for human remains and potential further deposition sites.

This involved the painstaking removal of leaf litter to identify changes in soil composition and signs of ground disturbance. Teams also carried out fingertip searches through dense laurel and bogland on their hands and knees.

The Force worked closely with specialist colleagues from the National Search Centre, National Crime Agency, Environment Agency, fire service, and archaeological experts.

The operation saw the first documented dammed watercourse diversion and high-assurance fingertip search of a watercourse bed.

This involved diverting the stream to enable the systematic sieving of 300 metres of its bed.

This element of the search required 104 officers working over a six-week period, contributing a combined total of 1,664 hours.

Gravel and sediment were carefully sieved to a depth of 2mm in order to identify even the smallest bone fragments and other evidential material.

Steven Kempster

Desborough brutally attacked and ‘squeezed the life out of’ his prison cellmate Steven Kempster while he slept in the early hours of 15 September 2025.

He then waited hours to raise the alarm, pretending 65-year-old Steven had fallen out of bed and wasn’t breathing.

Desborough had told fellow prisoners the previous night that he would kill Steven if he was irritated again by his snoring.

Desborough was at the time being held on remand at HMP Exeter charged with the murder of Daniel Coleman in Cornwall. He was later charged with the murder of Claudio Aquilino.

Desborough was sentenced for the murder of Steven at Exeter Crown Court on 15 June 2026. He was jailed for life, to serve a minimum of 18 years.

His Honour Judge James Patrick told Desborough: “Simply put, you squeezed the life out of him and left him for dead. It is the inevitable inference from what you had said that you strangled him as he slept. It was some hours before you alerted the authorities to what had happened.”

Desborough and Steven shared a cell on D-Wing of the prison from September 12, 2025.

The Judge said Steven was an ‘older, frailer’ man who ‘tried to keep himself to himself’ and had a health condition which meant he snored.

He added: “He had the misfortune to be allocated a cell with you, James Desborough. You were younger, more confident and stronger. Your cellmate irritated you so much that you asked to be moved. It is likely that would have happened if you had been more patient. As it is, you said that you would kill him if he snored again. Seemingly, he did, and so you did.”

Det Supt Bentley said: “Steven Kempster was also vulnerable by virtue of his age and heath conditions and was murdered, seemingly for snoring. For Desborough to take Steven’s life in this way was cowardly.”