Doncaster man guilty of killing PE teacher with one punch

Blue Horrobin, 23, of Askern has been found guilty of manslaughter.

Mr Siddall, who worked at a local primary school, was out with his friends on Thursday, August 13, 2015 when he was attacked by Blue Horrobin, 23, from Askern.

He did not know Horrobin but witnesses recalled the attacker behaving erratically.

Horrobin was seen landing a single punch to Mr Siddall’s head inside the VDKA bar at around 11pm.

CCTV and witness accounts led police and prosecutors to believe that the assault was unprovoked.

The teacher returned to his home in Crossfield Lane, Skellow, where he lived with his parents, after complaining of pain to his head. After telling his parents he had been assaulted and applying ice to his head, he went to bed.

At around 5am the next day, a family member found that he had died overnight. A post-mortem examination found that a head injury was the cause of his death.

Horrobin was arrested by police on August 15, 2015 and charged with manslaughter and at Sheffield Crown Court today, a jury found Horrobin guilty of the offence.

Detective Chief Inspector Steve Handley, who led the investigation, said: “Lewis was killed as the result of an unprovoked and senseless act of violence when he was simply out enjoying himself with some friends. This was an avoidable death and shows the devastating effect one punch can have on the lives of the victim, their family and friends.

“This could have been entirely avoided; had Horrobin made a different decision not to lash out with his fists, Lewis would still be alive and well today.

“This was a senseless act that robbed a popular young man of his life, and has robbed a loving family of someone they loved so dearly. No prison sentence will bring Lewis back and they will undoubtedly feel a sense of great loss, sadness and anger for the rest of their lives. I hope that today’s outcome, now that someone has been held to account for what happened, will give them at least some comfort to begin to heal.”

Horrobin has been remanded in custody and will appear at Sheffield Crown Court to be sentenced on Monday, February 20.