Pub regular who killed grandfather with one punch after woman rejected his 'creepy' advances is jailed for ten years

 • Get your news delivered straight to you by 7am - sign up to our new Morning Mail newsletter for FREE By ANDY DOLAN, GENERAL REPORTER Published: 16:40, 22 May 2026 | Updated: 16:45, 22 May 2026 A pub regular who killed a grandfather with a single punch after his 'creepy' advances to a woman on a night out were rejected was jailed for ten years today.  Unemployed Nathan Gothard was 'wound up like a coiled spring' when he 'poleaxed' David Darke, 66, who suffered a fatal brain injury when his head hit the ground.  The 37-year-old then 'celebrated' the punch and was seen 'bouncing' around on his toes after delivering the fatal blow, prosecutors alleged. Sentencing him this afternoon, Judge William Harbage KC told Gothard: 'You had lost your temper and punched David Darke using a considerable degree of force.  'This was a tragic, senseless and unnecessary act of fatal violence.'  Leicester Crown Court heard Gothard attacked Mr Darke, an engineer, to 'save his own face' after being rebuffed by the woman and then losing a fight outside a village pub.  He was said to have wanted 'revenge' after he was earlier knocked to the ground outside The Crown Inn in Appleby Magna, Leicestershire, by Mr Darke's colleague. Gothard, who lived with his uncle yards from the pub, had denied murder and manslaughter, arguing he was acting in self-defence. But he was convicted by jurors earlier this month of the less serious offence following a trial. Mr Darke's family said his life had been 'tragically cut short' and he would be 'sorely missed by all who knew and loved him' Nathan Gothard, 37, Gothard said he did not intend to cause Mr Darke serious harm but knew he had when he heard the sound his head made when it hit the ground. Jurors had heard how Mr Darke had tried to help Gothard back to his feet after the initial fight, but was punched in the face causing him to fall backwards onto the ground, suffering a fractured skull and bleed on the brain just days before Christmas last year.  He died in hospital on December 27, six days after the attack. Members of both Gothard's and Mr Darke's families were in court for the sentencing hearing this afternoon.  In heart-rending victim impact statements that they read out themselves, Mr Darke's three daughters – Emily, Sarah and Rebecca – described their father as 'kind, brave, intelligent and courageous'.  Sarah Darke, 35, described her father as 'one of my best friends', adding: 'He stepped in to protect someone else, he did the right thing and for that he lost his life.  'To my lovely, kind, brave, intelligent dad, I am so proud to have been your daughter.'  Emily Darke, 29, told the court her father had saved four lives through organ donation. Mr Darke was punched outside The Crown Inn in Appleby Magna, Leices. on December 21 She said: 'His only crime was not accepting persistent and inappropriate behaviour toward women.  'While most families celebrate Christmas, including Gothard's, we spent a week in hospital watching our dad slowly die. 'He died doing the right thing, defending his friends and young women. 'We need more men like my dad in this world, and we need better boys.'  Rebecca Darke, 37, said she hadn't been able to return to her home since her father's death, as he had fitted its bathroom and kitchen, and had been living in her mother's spare room since, along with her five-year-old son.  She added: 'I am now scared of teaching him for standing up for what is right, because of what it could cost - that standing up for what is right could lead to your death.  'I have been robbed of my sense of safety, and don't know how to move forward from this. It has changed who I am as a person – I am scared to challenge people on their behaviour.'  Rebecca went on to criticise Gothard for putting her family through an 'unnecessary' trial.  She said: 'I have had to sit and relive the last moment of dad's life, seeing things I did not need to see, hearing things I did not need to hear. The aftermath of the trial was horrendous.  'I feel like my dad has died all over again. I am angry, grief-stricken, heartbroken, but above all traumatised by the sudden, violent way my dad died.'  Rebecca revealed she and her sisters had had the words from their father's Christmas cards to them, that they discovered in his home after the attack, tattooed onto their bodies. The court heard Gothard, who was a regular at the pub, had been drinking there since 4pm on the day of the attack.  Mr Darke arrived later with a group of colleagues from a nearby Best Western hotel for a Christmas night out.  Jurors have been told that Gothard started behaving inappropriately, making unwelcome advances and remarks to women in the Best Western group, and made it clear to them 'it was his terrain - they were in his pub'.  The landlady of the pub, and her partner, said they had tried to calm Gothard down and had taken him outside in a bid to get him to go home – but he refused.  Peter Joyce KC, prosecuting, described Gothard as an 'oaf' who 'behaved boorishly, odiously, and with contempt for everyone except his own sense of dignity and pride that night'.  He said: 'David Darke is dead because this oaf decided to hit him rather than walk round him.'  Jurors were told Gothard had been 'riling, irritating and niggling' and wanted a fight.  Mr Joyce said Gothard had a fight with a man named Ty Fearn which he lost, leaving him on the ground and with an injury to his face.  He added: 'He could have gone home then.  'The defendant, in his rage after losing the fight that he had picked with Ty Fearn, attacked Mr Darke to save his own face. And he hit him so hard that he killed him.' CCTV from outside of the pub played in court showed Gothard being knocked to the ground and kicked, before Mr Darke was seen reaching down and pulling him up by his arm.  Moments later, in an area of the pub not covered by CCTV, he was punched, then seen lying unconscious on the ground.  Mr Joyce added: 'Having lost face the defendant wanted it back - he attacked David Darke.  'And he punched him so hard that he was knocked straight to the ground.'  Gothard argued he acted in self-defence and felt intimidated by Mr Darke, who he claimed had threatened to 'bury him'.  He said he didn't intend to cause Mr Darke serious harm - but knew he had when he heard the sound his head made when it hit the ground.  Balraj Bhatia KC, defending, read a letter to the court in which Gothard said: 'Words are not good enough to describe what I did.  'Not a single day passes when I am not thinking about the hurt I have caused.  The punch thrown has changed so many lives forever.' He said he was 'truly sorry for the pain and grief' caused to Mr Darke's family.  Judge Harbage told Mr Bhatia that Gothard had shown 'precious little evidence of remorse during the trial' – but added 'late remorse was better than none at all'.  Turning to Gothard, he said: 'David Darke was much loved, and had plenty of life to look forward to.  'You punched him so hard that he was unconscious before he hit the ground.  'He fell back without any ability to protect his fall, and the back of his head hit the ground with a sickening thud, causing a fractured skull and severe traumatic brain injury.  'If only you had gone home when you were encouraged to do so, David Darke would still be alive, and you would not be in the dock.  'This is not a classic single punch manslaughter case. What happened was the culmination of your aggressive earlier behaviour.'  The judge added: 'I am sure you were the aggressor in this, and were not acting in self-defence at any point.'  In a statement released through police following the sentencing, Mr Darke's family said he had been looking forward to retirement and described Gothard as a 'braggart'. They said: 'Dave's only 'crime' that night was stepping in the way of a thug intent on harassing the women and antagonising the men in the group.' Detective Inspector Kevin Hames, from the East Midlands Special Operations Unit (EMSOU) Murder Investigation Team, said: 'Gothard had every opportunity to walk away but he chose to remain outside the pub and his actions that day have devastated a family. 'They will now need to navigate their lives without their loved one. On behalf of the team, I would like to thank them for their courage and understanding.' No comments have so far been submitted. 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