Killer jailed after admitting one-punch manslaughter

Jermaine Mazlum died following a one-punch assault

A homeless man who killed a father-of-three with a single punch in a Nottingham street has been jailed.

Kevin Wild assaulted his victim in Alfred Street North, in the St Ann’s area of the city, on 17 June.

Paramedics treated Jermaine Mazlum at the scene before taking him to Queen's Medical Centre, where he died on 5 July.

Nottingham Crown Court heard the assault happened outside Framework’s Mechanics House, which provides accommodation and resettlement support for homeless people.  Both men were residing at the complex.

Shortly before 9pm, Wild – who was under the influence of alcohol – approached Mr Mazlum outside the complex and punched him in the head, causing him to fall and hit his head on the road.

The court heard Mr Mazlum, 43, previously had a portion of his skull removed having suffered a severe head injury in 2020, which prosecutors said left him “vulnerable”.

Jermaine Mazlum was 'vulnerable' having suffered a serious head injury in 2020

Wild, 53, was aware of Mr Mazlum’s fragile condition – but still assaulted him for reasons his defence counsel said “he simply cannot explain”. 

The attack left Mr Mazlum with a catastrophic head injury and he died on 5 July.

Following his arrest, Wild admitting throwing the punch but insisted he did not mean to kill Mr Mazlum. He told officers he was “terribly sorry”, adding: “I had no intention to cause him serious injury. I can only apologise to his family.”

Wild went on to plead guilty to manslaughter and his sentencing hearing took place today (13 September).

After CCTV footage of the incident was shown in court, Judge Nirmal Shant KC concluded: “This was a completely unprovoked attack. The defendant has walked across the street to punch him. It was a sucker punch – he wouldn’t have seen it coming.”

Philip Bown, mitigating on behalf of Wild, said: “He simply can’t explain why he lashed out. There was no rivalry between them.

“He was immediately panic-stricken and has still not come to terms with what he did. He is deeply and sincerely remorseful.”

Kevin Wild

Handing Wild a custodial sentence of six years and nine months, Judge Shant KC said: “On 17 June 2024, you altered the lives of those who knew Mr Mazlum forever. I’ve heard of the grief felt by those who miss him as a son, a father, a brother and as an uncle.

“They had already been through the trauma of his previous head injury and all that that involved. What you did that day added to that. They have spoken movingly about their loss and your punishment is unlikely to make that loss any easier to bear.

“From what can be seen on the CCTV, for some reason best known to yourself – and perhaps not even that – you crossed the road, there was a bit of a tussle, no more than that, and then absolutely unprovoked you struck him on the side of the face with such force he fell to the pavement, striking his head. He did not stand a chance of living.”

In a joint statement, Jermaine’s family said:

“Losing Jermaine has left massive holes in all our hearts. He was an amazing brother, a loving son and an amazing father to his three children. It is devastating they face growing up without a Dad.

“Jermaine was someone who would always pick you up with his laughter and light up any room. He was so easy to talk to and would make friends anywhere he went. We will remember him as someone who had the kindest of hearts and would do anything for anybody. 

“Jermaine was such a hard worker and had the gift of the gab making him a great salesman. He would often hand his wages out to those less fortunate than him and would help the homeless attending foodbanks with his kettle full of boiling water to make them coffee. 

“The past few months have been the worst of our lives. We cannot understand how anyone could do this to Jermaine knowing how vulnerable he was from his head injury and he deserves justice.

“We have a massive Jermaine shaped hole in our hearts. Our lives will never be the same again.”

Following the sentencing, Detective Inspector Clare Gibson, of Nottinghamshire Police, said: “Our deepest sympathies and thoughts remain with Jermaine’s family, friends and everyone who knew him.

“This tragic incident shows how throwing even a single punch can have devastating consequences.  Kevin Wild’s actions that evening took away Jermaine’s future in an instant as well as destroying so many other lives forever.

“There is never an acceptable excuse for violence and just one moment of aggression can result in a lifetime of consequences, regret and guilt.”