Attacker jailed for 14 years after £50 row killing

A man who carried out a "vicious attack" which killed a father-of-two in a row over £50 has been jailed for 14 years.

Steven Chappell, 29, of Cwmdare, Rhondda Cynon Taf, repeatedly kicked and punched Daniel Bradley, who he claimed owed him money.

Mr Bradley, 32, of Porthcawl, Bridgend county, died in hospital of sepsis two weeks after the attack last September.

Chappell was sentenced at Cardiff Crown Court having been found guilty of manslaughter in July.

Judge Tracey Lloyd-Clarke, the Recorder of Cardiff, said it had been a "vicious attack" which had caused "terrible grief and immeasurable pain".

She told Chappell he was a man with a long history of violence who was not truly remorseful.

She paid tribute to Mr Bradley's family, telling them she understood the sentence could not ease their grief and said: "It is clear he was precious to you."

Mr Bradley was attacked as he left the New Brogden pub in Porthcawl early on 9 September.

Chappell claimed he had given Mr Bradley £50 for cocaine and wanted the money back.

But Mr Bradley said it was a case of mistaken identity and he did not have the money.

Mr Bradley suffered fractured ribs, a brain injury caused by oxygen deprivation and developed a chest infection that led to sepsis.

In a victim personal statement read in court, Mr Bradley's mother Sheila Rees said his two daughters, now aged four and six, ask their mother if she will die "like Daddy".

Describing her son as "the core of the family", she said the pain of her grief was unbearable.

In a statement, Mr Bradley's father Richard Griffiths said his son was not a fighter and "didn't have a nasty bone in his body".

Chappell, who was wearing a medical boot and using crutches, repeatedly kicked and punched the arcade engineer to the ground in two separate attacks in a lane near the pub and then on Nicholls Avenue.

A local resident heard him shout, "You are lucky I am on crutches 'cause I would... kill you."

Mr Bradley was taken to the Princess of Wales Hospital in Bridgend where he was diagnosed with a broken rib before being discharged with painkillers.

His mother said she became increasingly worried over the following days as her son was lying in bed hallucinating and unable to move.

On 15 September, Mr Bradley returned to the same hospital where he went into cardiac arrest and was diagnosed with severe sepsis.

Ms Rees said: "I had no idea how unwell he was until the doctor said they had been attempting CPR for to 20 to 30 mins.

"They managed to get his heart going again, but they said he was very sick and we could lose him."

He suffered a irreversible brain injury caused by oxygen deprivation and died in intensive care on 23 September.

South Wales Police said Mr Bradley was the victim of a "violent and unprovoked" attack.

Det Insp Claire Lamerton added: "Daniel didn’t represent any threat, and nothing happened that night that justified what Steven Chappell did.

"Rather than walking away, Steven Chappell’s anger resulted in the assault on Daniel being excessive, unnecessary, and completely reckless."

Chappell must serve two-thirds of the prison term before he can be considered for parole, as well as a further two years on licence.