The mugshots of the men responsible for the brutal murder of Failsworth dad Ashley Walsh have been released after both were given life sentences.

The 34-year-old was killed on Friday, January 7 this year and his body was later found in four suitcases in Sandhills Park in Collyhurst.

Cousins Aaron Evitt, 33, of Brentnor Road, Manchester, and Gerrard McGlacken, 45, of Kintore Walk, Manchester both denied murder but pleaded guilty to the prevention of a lawful burial at a trial at Manchester Crown Court.

The pair were found guilty by a jury yesterday and sentencing today Judge Justice Goose considered the men “equally culpable” and gave both a minimum term of 28 years in custody.

Judge Justice Goose said Ashley who suffered 102 separate injuries was “brutally killed” by “repeated hammer blows” and “stab wounds to the chest”.

He added that Ashley’s body was then dismembered and his body “hidden in bushes close to a school in suitcases.”

Judge Goose then told the court of the defendant’s previous convictions.

The court heard that McGlacken has 17 previous convictions for 27 offences, including being in possession of a blade and battery - he once held a knife to someone’s throat, while Evitt has 16 previous convictions for 28 offences, including possession of a weapon in a public place, battery, and affray - in 2020 he threw a table and a TV at his ex-partner’s windows.

Both men were on licence after release from prison when the murder took place.

Judge Goose recounted the events of January 7 to the court.

He said the three men were drinking together when an argument between Evitt and Ashley “turned into a fight” that caused Evitt to “pick up a claw hammer” and “repeatedly” strike Ashley in the face, an act the judge said was “not in self-defence at all”.

Ashley then suffered “six deep stab wounds to the chest while alive but not moving”, Judge Goose said.

He added McGlacken carried out the “grotesque dismemberment” but both murdered Ashley and disposed of the body. He gave both men life sentences.

Reacting to the sentencing, Detective Inspector Daniel Lee of GMP’s Major Incident Team said: “These convictions are the result of a thorough investigation by our Major Incident Team who were committed to securing justice for Ashley’s family and I’m pleased that those responsible were convicted.

“It was a heinous act of violence and not only did Aaron Evitt and Gerard McGlacken take Ashley’s life, but they also attempted to conceal what they had done – causing extreme distress and upset to Ashley’s family and friends.

"Our thoughts are with them at this time, and we can only hope that today’s verdict brings some comfort.”

In a statement paying tribute to Ashley his family said: “Ashley, our blond-haired curly-haired smiling-faced little boy. Growing up in a large family, he touched the hearts of everyone he met. By nature, he was helpful, sentimental, mischievous and the most easy-going person.

“A talented motocross rider, his dad always his biggest supporter. We have been left devastated that Ashley was to lose his life in such horrific circumstances, he was a lover not a fighter. Ashley – you mean the world to us, if love alone could have saved you, you would have lived forever.”