Michael Phillips murder trial: Neil Elliott - The Hartlepool waste business boss whose search for thieves turned to killing

For Michael Phillips, it led to the end of his.

Now the company chief is facing a 15-year jail term for manslaughter and assault of Mr Phillps’s friend Lee Hardwell after he gathered a group men to join his search for those responsible for stealing – then dumping – a Ford Fiesta stolen in a break-in.

One of his co-accused, Lee Darby, was convicted of murder, while Anthony Small was convicted of manslaughter.

Elliott’s Facebook post on the morning of June 10 was the starting point for what the judge in his trial called “street justice”.

“Whoever burgled my daughter’s house last night and took her car – your life is about to change, trust me.”

Now the 44-year-old, who lived in a £1.7 million mansion, is set to call a prison cell his home.

The seven-bedroom Briarfields Close property, called Orchard House, was put on the market last May, weeks before the fatal attack.

The details of the “breathtaking” detached address show it has its own cinema, with a wall dedicated to Al Pacino and Scarface, while it also boasts its own games room with bar and roof terrace for entertaining, swimming pool, gym and a sauna.

The house, which would cost £6,788 a month in mortgage repayments, also features a stables, ‘spectacular kitchen’, a triple garage, with a lawn which is “great for a party” with “exclusive privacy.”

Elliott’s distinctive vehicle, a black X-Class Mercedes, played an integral part of the proceedings at Teesside Crown Court.

The pick-up, with its private registration plate 2NE, was captured on CCTV in the lead up to the incident in Rydal Street, with the court told it was the only one of its kind on the roads in Hartlepool.

For many in Hartlepool, the businessman was known as one of the bosses of Niramax “one of the region’s largest family-owned suppliers of integrated waste management and environmental solutions” founded in 2001.

Elliott is listed as the director of Brenda Road-based Niramax Holdings, Niramax Rubber Products registered to his home address, as well as Nationwide Tyre Disposals Ltd, based at Tofts Road West, SWS Ltd, previously known as Stranton Waste and Salvage, as well as Seneca Investments and Development Ltd, which rents and leases construction and civil engineering machinery and equipment, which is based in the town’s marina.

He was previously a director of Seneca Homes Ltd, Melton Wind Ltd and Seneca Global Energy Ltd.

During the court case, jurors were told Elliott, who left school without any qualifications, backed a series of charities, including one which supported water projects in Tanzania, and supported West Hartlepool RFC.

However, the hearing was also told Elliott could be “nasty, horrible” to some people, while others refered to his "business empire” and how he was always smartly dressed as he could afford it.