His life had promised so much.. it ended in murder at a squalid 'dosshouse'

GRADUATING from university with a well paid job on the horizon, Donald Patience had a bright future.

- ANDREW BARDSLEY

Born into a well-off family in the Scottish Highlands, the circumstances of his shocking death were as unexpected as they were horrific. Donald, 45, was found dead in a squalid 'dosshouse, hundreds of miles from home.

The story of how he came to be murdered is a tragic and cruel tale.

A series of setbacks ended with Donald reaching rock bottom, swapping a stable family life for a world populated by drug addicts and chaos.

In August last year, he was strangled to death in his own home, in Radcliffe, Bury, by a man who claimed to care for him but was taking advantage of his kind nature.

A man who claimed to 'love' Donald 'like a father, who failed to repay the generosity which Donald had afforded him in life and failed to grant him basic dignity in death. After killing the dadof-three, Ian Connell simply left his body to decompose.

Donald would likely have laid dead for longer had Connell's behaviour not aroused the suspicion of a postman.

By the time of his death, Donald had grown tired of Connell. The constant requests for money to feed Connell's 20-year crack cocaine and heroin habit had become too much. When he put his foot down, Connell claimed Donald was 'taking the p***! It was then that Connell killed his supposed friend. After being found guilty of murder, Connell, 39, faces a life sentence.

Born in April 1978 to his mother Elizabeth and father Donald, Donald Jnr grew up in the Highlands town of Alness. He had access to 'family money' through properties in Scotland.

Known by his loved ones by his middle name, Prentice, sometimes shortened to Prent, Donald showed academic promise. He graduated from Heriot-Watt University as an actuary in 2001, a responsible job which involves the use of statistics and analysis to calculate insurance risks and premiums.