Punch death in central London

A football fan who threw a single punch which left a man with fatal brain injuries during an altercation in central London has been cleared of manslaughter .

Sunderland supporter Lewis MacLeod, 36, was accused of killing 43-year-old Michael Edwards during an incident on Borough High Street in the early hours of September 13 last year.

After being punched, Mr Edwards fell and hit his head on the pavement, and died from the resulting brain injuries in hospital four days later.

MacLeod had travelled to London from the North East that day for a Premier League match between Sunderland and Crystal Palace , and spent several hours drinking with a friend before the fatal incident.

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He told a trial at Inner London Crown Court that he threw the punch while “scared and terrified” and insisted he was acting in self-defence.

“I’m absolutely devastated and always will be,” he said.

“I never wanted this to happen.

I’m gutted.”
MacLeod broke down in tears in the dock on Monday afternoon as a jury found him not guilty of manslaughter.

He will still face sentencing in June for an assault on Mr Edwards’s friend during the same incident.

The court heard how Mr Edwards, from Warwickshire, had been celebrating a friend’s birthday, while MacLeod had started drinking with friend David Jackson, who he was staying with, at a pub near Kings Cross Station around 4pm.

Mr Edwards and his friend James Roberts were already drinking in the area, and there was evidence that both Mr Edwards and MacLeod had used cocaine.

By around 1.40am on September 13, both pairs of friends were in Belushi’s bar on Borough High street, sitting on tables about five metres apart.

MacLeod and his friend were asked to leave the bar while Mr Edwards and Mr Roberts were vaping outside, and CCTV showed MacLeod – as he exited – trying to shake hands with Mr Edwards and then trying repeatedly to touch his groin.

The footage showed Mr Edwards and Mr Roberts gesturing after them, speaking to security, and then following MacLeod and Mr Jackson to a nearby shop called The Food and Wine store.

MacLeod was seen on camera throwing a punch to the right side of Mr Edwards’s head in the ensuing confrontation, sending him crashing to the pavement, and a fight then broke out inside the convenience store.

MacLeod said at trial he was “absolutely terrified and scared” when Mr Edwards was demanding that he come out of the shop.

“Who would not be scared of the two men,” he said.

“They were definitely going for trouble.”
He said he believed he would be “seriously hurt by these two big men and I just gave them a defensive, left one-punch shot”.

MacLeod admitted assault causing actual bodily harm against Mr Roberts, for punching him while he checked on Mr Edwards who was lying motionless on the ground.

Mr Roberts has denied a charge of affray in relation to the incident and is awaiting trial.

The match between Sunderland and Crystal Palace kicked off at 3pm on September 13 at Selhurst Park, ending in a 0-0 draw.

MacLeod admitted taking more cocaine after the street fight, and said he struggled to remember the details when he was arrested.

He has been released on bail ahead of the sentencing for the assault on Mr Roberts, which is due to be dealt with on June 1.