Man found guilty of manslaughter after Wayne Sheppard died
A man who threw a punch which led to the death of a popular Devizes man has been found guilty of manslaughter. On July 2, 2022, paramedics were called to New Park Street following a report that a man - Wayne Sheppard[1] - had sustained a serious head injury. Wayne, 44, of Waiblingen Way, Devizes - known to his friends as Bert - died in hospital six days after he was assaulted.
Darren John Fell, 39, of Hewitt Court, was found guilty following a trial at Winchester Crown Court. Following the incident, tests at a hospital showed that Mr Sheppard's injury was likely to have been a result of an assault and officers launched an investigation. Enquiries found Mr Sheppard had been punched by another man who was quickly identified as Fell.
He was arrested and charged with GBH. Detective Chief Inspector Phil Walker said: "This incident was a huge shock to the local close-knit community of Devizes, of which Wayne was a popular member. He was a well-liked and well-known man and I know news of his death was extremely upsetting for all who knew him.
"Extensive CCTV enquiries and witness statements were gathered as part of our investigation. "We discovered that Wayne was struck to the face by Fell after a short verbal exchange between them. This punch caused Wayne to fall backwards and hit his head on the concrete floor.
Wayne suffered a severe post traumatic brain injury that, sadly, he was unable to recover from. "During the trial, it was found that Wayne presented no danger to anyone and Fell was not acting in self-defence. He has shown no remorse for his actions.
"This incident demonstrates that one punch can kill and I would urge people to think twice before resorting to violence. One punch can have devastating consequences as has sadly been demonstrated in this case. "My thoughts are with Wayne's family and friends at this tragic time."
In a tribute released at the time of his death, Mr Sheppard's family described him as a 'happy go lucky man who had a kind nature. His parents Sandy and Pete said: "He was really well known and very well liked in Devizes. He was always out and about so everyone knew who he was and he'd help anyone.
He was such a kind person." Fell is due to be sentenced on July 31. You can stay up to date on the top news near you with Wiltshire Live's FREE newsletters - sign up to our newsletters here.[3]
Wayne Sheppard, 44, of Waiblingen Way, Devizes, died in hospital on July 8 after he was assaulted in the New Park Street area on July 2 (Image: Wiltshire Police/handout)
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