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A teenager has been jailed for six years – after a one-punch attack tragically killed a much-loved family man and serving soldier in Blyth last year.
Shortly after 3.15am on Sunday, October 6, 2024, police were alerted to a disturbance on Stanley Street, just outside of Déjà Vu nightclub.
Emergency services were swiftly deployed after it was reported there had been a fight involving multiple people, with one man unresponsive after sustaining a serious head injury.
Fast-time enquiries, including a trawl of CCTV, quickly revealed that two separate groups had left the bar around 15-minutes earlier, before becoming involved in a brief verbal altercation.
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Mason Ibbotson was identified on footage as punching his victim Corporal Shaun ‘Robbo’ Roberts once, causing him to fall to the ground and become unconscious.
In the moments after, the 18-year-old was seen to throw his hands in the air in celebration and hug someone in his company, before fleeing the scene on foot.
Robbo, aged 35, who had been visiting the area for work, was rushed to hospital in a life-threatening condition and placed in a critical care unit.
The serving army soldier, from Rutland, tragically later passed away in the early hours of November 1, 2024, after his life-support was withdrawn.
Ibbotson, aged 18, was arrested and brought into police custody the morning after the assault on suspicion of unlawful wounding.
Witnesses after the attack described overhearing a male matching his description say, “I’ve got blood on my hands. I think I’ve just killed someone.”
He was charged in connection with the report, with the offence upgraded to manslaughter after Robbo’s death almost four weeks later.
Ibbotson, of Norham Close in Blyth, attended Mid and South East Magistrates’ Court on December 16, 2024, where he pleaded guilty to manslaughter.
Yesterday (Monday) he appeared before a judge at Newcastle Crown Court who sentenced him to six years in prison.
During the hearing, a statement was read out from Robbo’s wife, Ellys Roberts, speaking of her family’s pain.
She said: “From that day, none of our lives were ever the same. I couldn’t tell our children if their Daddy would wake up, or if they’d ever be able to speak to him again.”
Ellys described her husband as a devoted father of four children, and “one of the most selfless people” she had ever met.
Following a tough start in life, she said that “as an adult his family, friends and career were his pride and joy” and he would step back into “Dad mode” after weeks of working away.
She spoke of Robbo’s bravery, including a time he was praised for running into the line of fire to save a fellow soldier, and that she was “always in awe” of him putting everyone first.
In the aftermath of the attack, Ellys said, that “having to sit at his bedside for weeks not knowing what our future as a family held was mental torture” while knowing his injuries were “life-changing from the start”.
When his life-support was withdrawn, she spoke of her devastation knowing his “body was healthy” but that “his brain has stopped him from waking up”.
Ellys added: “I have to sit with my children and explain to them repeatedly what happened to their Daddy, this is on a daily and nightly basis because of their ages they all have a different understanding.
“I know I will be answering these questions for years to come, and as a family we will have to keep reliving the heartbreak.
“It doesn’t feel real that he is never coming back. The loss of Robbo will be felt by so many of us for the rest of all our lives and no sentence will ever make any of this easier or bring him back.”
Speaking after the sentencing, Detective Chief Inspector Rebecca Fenney, of Northumbria Police’s Major Investigation Team, said: “No result will change or reverse the tragic events leading to Robbo’s senseless death – and our thoughts remain with Ellys, and all of his loved ones as they try to navigate life without him.
“This is unfortunately yet another sad case that highlights the potential consequences of choosing violence, instead of just walking away.
“Ibbotson made a decision to act in such a manner – and now as a result of one single punch, he has destroyed countless lives forever.
“Not only that, but Ibbotson’s immediate response to causing someone such harm was to celebrate and cheer in the street – while his victim lay on the ground unconscious.
“This comes as a timely reminder to those who are out socialising and may face scenarios involving conflict, which in this case has led to devastation.
“Do not allow a split-second wrong decision to become a life-long regret.”
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