Young dad murdered in horror street attack for a crime he didn't commit

The murder of a young dad ambushed just yards from his front door will feature in a crime documentary. Jon-Jo Highton was walking home from the pub when he was attacked in August 2014.

He was just 18 when he was killed in a revenge attack for a crime he did not commit. Six men, dressed in black and armed with a haul of weapons, set upon their unarmed victim.

They had with them a Samurai sword, an axe and a hunting knife. The killers fled the scene in two vehicles, leaving Mr Highton for dead.

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He suffered catastrophic injuries and died at the scene in Preston, LancsLive reports. The dad-of-one had survived a previous knife attack,

He had been trying to turn his life around when he was killed for his past associations. The night before he died, a former associate was involved in an incident at the home of drug dealer Owen Whitesmith.

Whitesmith, 18, gathered a group to seek retribution, with Mr Highton in the wrong place at the wrong time. Almost a decade on from the murder, documentary 'Secrets of a Murder Detective' will look at the police investigation which led to the conviction of six men from Preston.

Three others were convicted of assisting an offender after getting involved in the aftermath of the killing. The documentary will air on channel True Crime at 10pm on Wednesday, June 19.

It features interviews with Mr Highton's family, police officers involved in the investigation and journalists who covered the case. True Crime is available on Sky 147, Freeview 67, Virgin 148 or Freesat 135.