Pub bouncer guilty of killing man on night out

A pub doorman has been convicted of killing a young man after a "violent confrontation" on a night out.

Dylan Maxwell, 28, repeatedly punched 25-year-old Luke Thompson, causing fatal head injuries, when they crossed paths in Pontefract town centre.

Thompson was also struck by a passing car after he had been attacked, causing further injuries, though these did not contribute to his death.

Maxwell was found guilty of manslaughter by a jury at Leeds Crown Court earlier and will be sentenced in June.

Maxwell, of Wood View Avenue, Castleford, was remanded in custody until his sentencing hearing.

West Yorkshire Police said Maxwell and Thompson did not know each other, and had both been out in Pontefract when the incident happened on Front Street in the early hours of 19 November 2023.

Maxwell finished his shift as a pub door supervisor and had gone on to a nightclub.

He later left in a taxi and asked the driver to stop on Front Street so he could talk to a passing woman whom he had earlier been with at the club. The woman got into the taxi.

Thompson, who was walking nearby, approached the scene, and the jury heard Maxwell moved towards him and punched him, knocking him to the ground.

When he got back to his feet, "unsteady and disorientated", Maxwell struck him again and Thompson fell back, hitting his head on the ground where he was knocked unconscious.

Police said medical evidence confirmed the base of his skull was fractured and he suffered a bleed on the brain, injuries from which he never recovered.

The car which ran over Thompson as he lay on the ground broke his leg and pelvis, but he died from the brain injury 10 days later in hospital.

Maxwell fled the scene but was arrested a few days later. He claimed he had acted in self-defence and had "pre-empted an assault" but the jury rejected his account.

Det Ch Insp James Entwistle said his thoughts were with Luke Thompson's friends and loved ones.

"What started as a normal Saturday night out turned into confrontation, violence and, ultimately, the tragic and unnecessary loss of a young man's life," he said.

"I hope today's verdict brings some comfort.

"As licensed door staff, Maxwell was trained in conflict management and should have known how to defuse the situation. Instead, he let his anger and his ego take over."

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