Lichfield Pub Owner Dies After Punch to Neck at Local Bar

Stafford Crown Court heard on Wednesday that a punch to the neck killed a local publican during a violent incident at Ricco and Loren bar in Lichfield. Matthew O’Gara, 44, ran The Plough pub on the outskirts of the town. He was attacked on May 24 by Billy Allison, 36, who founded the Raise the Colours bar. The trial is currently ongoing as prosecutors present their case against the defendant.

Prosecutor Timothy Hannam KC described the attack as a completely unprovoked and senseless assault on O’Gara and his friend, Adam Cooper. Allison, who lives in Shirley, Solihull, was visiting Lichfield with a group of friends that included his girlfriend Charlotte Dean, Ryan Bridge, and Ben Cullen. Hannam stated that Allison had been drinking throughout the day and also took cocaine before the incident. He did not know either of the men he attacked.

According to the court, O’Gara was dancing with his back to Allison when the defendant delivered a hard punch to the side of his neck. Hannam said the sound of the blow was loud enough to be heard over the bar’s DJ system. The impact broke several bones in O’Gara’s neck and split an artery. This caused a massive hemorrhage at the base of his brain, leading to immediate cardiac arrest. O’Gara fell to the floor motionless and never regained consciousness. He died two days later at the Queen Elizabeth Hospital in Birmingham.

Allison then turned his attention to Adam Cooper, who was 65 years old. Cooper had been dancing nearby and looked down at O’Gara as he fell. Hannam said Allison used his right fist to punch Cooper hard in the face, breaking his eye socket and nose. CCTV footage from the dancefloor showed Cooper looking toward Allison and his girlfriend several times before the attack began. In total, three powerful punches were delivered in about six seconds, leaving both men severely injured.

Eyewitnesses described Allison as almost frothing and manic, as if he was on something. Hannam noted that Allison had been drinking at several bars in Lichfield during the day. The bouncer let Allison back into the bar on the orders of the owner, who was a friend of the defendant. Allison returned to the area where people were trying to revive O’Gara. As he left the pub, he swapped T-shirts with his friend Ben Cullen.

CCTV footage showed Allison and Cullen in parkland on the edge of the city center around 1 a.m. They later reappeared at the Cathedral Hotel on Beacon Street, where Cullen had a room booked. Hannam argued that Allison intended to evade capture by staying with Cullen rather than returning to his own booking at St John’s House on St John Street. He was arrested at the hotel around 5 a.m. and answered no comment to police questions. Allison denies murder and grievous bodily harm with intent against Cooper but admits to manslaughter and inflicting grievous bodily harm.

The defendant wore a black suit, white shirt, and tie in the dock. He looked down at the floor as the CCTV footage of the fatal assault was played in court. Hannam suggested Allison’s defense would claim he was sleep-deprived, drunk, and under the influence of cocaine, and that he did not intend to cause really serious harm. The trial continues at Stafford Crown Court.