Killer fatally punched man after Audlem pub row

A killer fatally punched a man who was on a night out celebrating his wife's birthday.

Adam Lovatt, 45, was attacked by Samuel Thorpe following a row in a pub in Audlem, Cheshire.

Police said Thorpe, 26, pursued Mr Lovatt from the venue in the early hours of 25 May 2018 and punched him in the face, causing a fatal brain bleed.

At Liverpool Crown Court, he was found guilty of manslaughter.

He is due to be sentenced next month.

Deli owner Mr Lovatt had recently moved to the area.

On the night he died, Cheshire Constabulary said, he had visited the Shroppie Fly, on Audlem Wharf, after his wife, with whom he had been celebrating, returned home.

Police said a customer had objected to his presence and tried to assault him. He left almost immediately, pursued by Thorpe and a second man, 37-year-old Nicolas Hill.

The pair caught up with him outside another pub, The Bridge Inn, where Thorpe delivered the fatal punch.

Mr Lovatt fell backwards, suffering two skull fractures as his head struck the ground, and he died later that day.

The pair then tried to evade police by driving to Market Drayton in Shropshire, sticking to country lanes, police said.

Thorpe also disposed of his phone and stayed overnight in North Wales after detectives visited his parents' home looking for him.

Thorpe, of Annions Lane, Wybunbury, is due to return to Liverpool Crown Court for sentencing on 26 November.

He will be joined by Hill, of Moorsfield Avenue, Audlem, who was cleared of manslaughter but previously admitted assisting an offender.

"Adam's life was tragically cut short with just one punch," Det Insp Adam Waller, from Cheshire Constabulary, said.

"Neither Thorpe or Hill made any attempts to look after anyone else but themselves in making their escape and attempting to cover their tracks."

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