Family of Doncaster teacher killed with single punch speak out: 'Our hearts will never truly heal'

A Doncaster family say they will never come to terms with the loss of their '˜blue-eyed boy' as the man who killed him with a single punch is put behind bars.
Primary school teacher Lewis Siddall, 24, was fatally attacked by Blue Horrobin, 23, in VDKA bar in Doncaster town centre on August 13, 2015.Primary school teacher Lewis Siddall, 24, was fatally attacked by Blue Horrobin, 23, in VDKA bar in Doncaster town centre on August 13, 2015.
Primary school teacher Lewis Siddall, 24, was fatally attacked by Blue Horrobin, 23, in VDKA bar in Doncaster town centre on August 13, 2015.

Blue Horrobin of Highfield Road, Askern was sentenced to eight years in prison, with another three to serve on license, after being found guilty of the manslaughter of 24-year-old Doncaster primary school teacher, Lewis Siddall.

Horrobin, now aged 23, delivered a single, fatal punch to Mr Siddall in an unprovoked attack carried out at VDKA bar in Doncaster town centre on August 13, 2015.

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His mother Lynne Siddall, found him dead in his bed at the family home in Skellow at 5am the following morning.

Following today’s sentencing, a victim impact statement released by the Siddall family described Horrobin’s attack on the young P.E teacher as an ‘unnecessary and evil act’.

She said: “As a family we will never come to terms with the loss of our beautiful son Lewis. We speak on behalf of everyone who knew and loved him, including his friends, colleagues and pupils, but especially his brothers Karl, Blake and twin brother Russell and their partners.

“This senseless and unprovoked attack has taken the light of our lives and our hearts will never truly heal. We have found the whole experience of sitting through a trial, just to prove our son’s innocence, to be truly traumatic.

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“The complete and utter devastation we feel at losing someone who was and still is the centre of our world, has truly destroyed our family unit.

“We will never completely come to terms with our loss resulting from such an unnecessary and evil act.

“Today we have some justice for Lewis and we now have to find the strength to move forward without him.”

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Horrobin was given the three year extension to his sentence, after Justice David Holgate deemed he posed a ‘high risk of serious harm’ to the public, following the unprovoked attack on 24-year-old Lewis Siddall on August 13, 2015

The extension was also awarded due to behaviour exhibited with Horrobin’s previous convictions, one of which saw the former bookmaker fracture a man’s cheek bone in three places during an unprovoked attack.

Horrobin, who will not be eligible for parole until he has served at least two-thirds of his sentence, remained silent as he was sent to prison.

A woman in the public gallery sobbed, as Horrobin was taken away to begin his sentence.

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It took jurors just 90 minutes to find Horrobin guilty of one charge of manslaughter on January 20, following a two-week trial at Sheffield Crown Court, during which Horrobin claimed he had been acting in self-defence.

Justice Holgate dismissed the claim, calling it a ‘fabrication’.