A man has been jailed for accidentally killing a Devizes man in a serious assault.
Darren Fell punched Wayne Sheppard during an attack in New Park Street in July 2022 – causing him to fall over and sustain a significant head injury.
The victim was taken to hospital, where he was found to have suffered a post traumatic brain injury which in which he would not recover. He died six days later.
Hospital tests revealed that his injury was likely to have been sustained during an assault – with police swiftly launching an investigation into the circumstances.
Fell, 40, was arrested for the assault and following Wayne’s death he was charged with manslaughter. He was found guilty by a jury and sentenced to nine years at Winchester Crown Court for sentencing today (Friday).
The defendant, of of Hewitt Court, will serve two thirds of his sentence behind bars before he is eligible for parole.
Detective Chief Inspector Phil Walker said that Wayne “presented no danger to anyone and Fell was not acting in self-defence” as he claimed during his trial.
Adding: “We discovered that Wayne was struck to the face by Fell after a short verbal exchange between them. This punch caused Wayne to fall backwards and hit his head on the concrete floor.
“Wayne suffered a severe post traumatic brain injury that, sadly, he was unable to recover from.
“This incident demonstrates that one punch can kill and I would urge people to think twice before resorting to violence. One punch can have devastating consequences as has sadly been demonstrated in this case.”
Wayne, known as Bert by family and friends, was described as a “happy go lucky man who had a kind nature” in a tribute released last year.
In a victim personal statement provided to the court, his parents Sandy and Pete said: “No parent wants to bury their child, I never thought that we would lose our son.
“We miss him every day and life has not been the same since he was assaulted. The hardest five days of our lives were sitting by Wayne’s bedside knowing that he was not going to survive his injuries.
“I miss seeing Wayne’s face at the front window pulling silly faces when he used to come over for a roast dinner. I often look up hoping to see him for a split second but then I remember, and I feel a pang in my heart and it hurts all over again.
“Wayne was not perfect, and he had some troubles, but he had a heart of gold. We will always miss him; we find it hard that his two daughters will now have to go through life without their dad and we will have to carry on with our lives without sour son.
“Wayne was taken from us because of a violent act that he did not deserve, and this is something we cannot forgive.”
