A Wythenshawe gunman who shot a man dead in broad daylight with a sawn-off shotgun has been sentenced to life in jail after being convicted for the second time.
Robert Knott, 33, of Hempcroft Road, Timperley, was sentenced at Manchester Crown Court after being found guilty of murdering Kevin Bond.
Knott had originally been convicted in July 2011 after denying the charge of murder but this was overturned by appeal judges in 2013.
Mr Bond, 30, was murdered after being attacked by Knott at traffic lights outside a BP petrol station off Rowlandsway, Wythenshawe on September 19 2010.
After crossing paths at the petrol station, Knott doubled-back and followed Mr Bond before stopping at a red light.
Mr Bond got out of his girlfriend’s car and was seen striding up a line of traffic towards Knott’s car before a loaded sawn-off, double-barrelled shotgun was fired into his abdomen at close range.
Despite reaching the hospital less than five minutes after being shot, Mr Bond died shortly after from his injuries.
In the proceedings, the court heard both Knott and Mr Bond knew each other and there was ‘no love lost between them’.
A father of three, Knott later handed himself into police on October 23 2011 after being named as a suspect.
Detective Superintendent Bob Tongue from the Major Incident Team said: “Knott was found guilty once and we are pleased to see he has been found guilty again.
“I hope that the sentencing today will go some way towards helping Kevin’s family get over what happened, however, it will never fill that void left in their lives.”
A re-trial was ordered after it emerged Knott had been convicted on a false basis due to conflicting evidence.
