Man found guilty of manslaughter of businessman in Audlem

Samuel Thorpe, 26, attacked businessman and father-of-two Adam Lovatt, 45, after a row in a pub, causing a fatal brain bleed and two skull fractures.

Police said Thorpe had chased Mr Lovatt from the venue in Audlem in the early hours of May 25, 2018 and punched him in the face.

Samuel Thorpe

He was found guilty at Liverpool Crown after a 10-day trial and will be sentenced next month.

Mr Lovatt's widow Clare said: "The immense loss I have experienced from losing Adam my amazing husband cannot be underestimated.

"His senseless and tragic death has caused me so much trauma over the last three and a half years."

Deli owner Mr Lovatt, who had recently moved to the area and had visited the Shroppie Fly pub after Clare, who had been out celebrating with him, 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. He died later that day.

Thorpe and Hill drove away from the scene through country lanes to Market Drayton to avoid police.

The following day Thorpe threw his phone away and left the area to stay in a guest house in North Wales overnight, Cheshire police said.

A trial originally took place in January 2020, but a verdict could not be reached and the retrial was set with a new jury,

Hill was found not guilty of manslaughter but had already pleaded guilty to assisting an offender at an earlier hearing.

He will also be sentenced on 26 November.

Speaking after Thorpe was convicted, Clare added: "As a nurse I have only ever wanted to help people, as a mother I only ever wanted a good life for our boys and for them to grow in a nurturing, respectful environment.

"Adam’s love and support gave us all of this. Having Adam literally ripped out of our lives and my future stolen is too much for anyone to bear.

Adam Lovatt with mum Maria

"I am no longer the person I was whilst he was alive. Adam loved and married me because of my values in caring for others because we were both good people."

Clare said Mr Lovatt was a 'true family man' and that being a good husband and father were extremely important values to him.

She added: "He did lovely things for me like running a hot bath, putting out candles and having a meal cooked for me when I got in late from a nursing shift.

"He made life better in every way.

"Adam was my soul mate, the love of my life, and the one for me.

"My heart has been broken since the day I laid next to him on his bed-side for the last time whilst on life support.

"I will forever be grateful for my darling husband, I love him always and forever."

Adam's mum Maria said: "He was funny, loving and hard working.

"Never did we envisage that when we wished him a happy birthday and joked with him that he was 'pushing fifty' that he would become a statistic belonging to that group of people that are killed by a single punch.

"Adam’s Dad and I, along with the rest of his family thank the Police and CPS lawyers for their tenacity.

"We are forever broken hearted, but sadly Adam will probably not be the last to be killed in this way.”

Detective Inspector Adam Waller, of Cheshire Police, said: "Adam was callously left lying fatally injured in the road until a passing motorist summonsed professional medical help.

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