A teenager has been found guilty of manslaughter committed in Whitehouse last July, while an adult defendant has been cleared of manslaughter but is guilty of assaulting the victim.
On Monday, the jury in the case of Thomas Watchman cleared the 39-year-old of the manslaughter of Andrew Roche.
Mr Roche, who was 42, died on August 11, 17 days after being assaulted following Ulster Avenue area of Ipswich.
Watchman, of Wicklow Road, was co-accused with a teenaged defendant who had also denied manslaughter.
However, while the jury cleared Watchman they found the teenager guilty of manslaughter.
During the trial, it was heard that the neither the teenager nor Watchman had known Mr Roche previously. Mr Roche had been “playfighting” with the boy before the situation turned serious, with playfighting being something Mr Roche was known to do with strangers, although this was only meant in jest.
A woman who observed the exchange said that at first, they seemed to be playfighting but then Roche began punching the boy to his face.
She said the boy appeared “scared” but then began to punch Roche back.
Mr Roche and a friend he had been drinking with at the Flying Horse pub began to walk away.
The boy then shouted that he would “get somebody his own age to come and fight him [Roche]”.
The court was told that shortly afterwards, Watchman got out of a grey Volvo and punched Mr Roche to the head, with this followed by another punch to the head from the teenager.
Watchman was found guilty of the alternative offence of assault by beating, with Judge Samantha Leigh sentencing him to eight weeks in prison which will take into account the time he has already served in custody.
The teenaged defendant is expected to be sentenced on April 17.
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