Man jailed for killing friend in drunken argument

Nathaniel Philip has been jailed for five and a half years for killing Robert Hiscoe, pictured

A man who killed his friend following an alcohol-fuelled argument has been jailed for five and a half years.

Robert Hiscoe, 37, died in hospital after being repeatedly punched by Nathaniel Philip at The Butterbowl pub in Leeds in the early hours of 5 May.

Leeds Crown Court heard the pair had spent the previous day drinking together in good spirits before an argument broke out after Mr Hiscoe, of New Farnley, had accused the defendant, 36, of insulting his wife.

Philip was sentenced on Monday after pleading guilty to manslaughter.

Nathaniel Philip has been jailed

The court was told Mr Hiscoe had punched Philip before being fatally injured when the pair came to blows again minutes later.

Prosecuting, Nigel Edwards said the father-of-two suffered "almost certainly unrevivable injuries" in the fight.

Witnesses said the two men had been happy together and "laughing and singing" prior to their fall-out.

They had gone to the pub to watch Leeds United play Southampton in the Championship play-off final.

The pair had been friends for up to three years, the court heard, and had holidayed together with their partners.

Mr Edwards said those who knew them said they had fallen out with "spats" previously, but "would always make up sooner or later".

They got into an argument outside the pub at about 01:00 on 5 May before CCTV footage played to the court showed Mr Hiscoe punching the defendant, who fell to the floor.

Philip was then seen being held back from Mr Hiscoe inside the pub before he threw a punch at him.

The men then came together, with Mr Hiscoe tackled to the floor by the defendant, who appeared to throw several punches at him from behind a partition wall.

Mr Hiscoe was knocked out during the attack and suffered a subarachnoid haemorrhage. He was taken to hospital, but never regained consciousness.

'Incredible man'

In a victim impact statement, Mr Hiscoe's older sister described him as an "incredible man" and the "kindest person with the most caring soul".

"He had the happiest life and he lived it to the fullest," she said.

A popular singer, he reportedly raised thousands for the NHS during the coronavirus pandemic.

More than £30,000 was raised for his family following his death.

Mr Hiscoe's widow Christina said he was "the love of my life" and she and their two young daughters "had been impacted beyond measure".

She said of their children: "How do you recover from losing your dad to such a senseless act of violence?

"Mr Philip's actions have taken so much from me and my girls."

Mr Hiscoe's organs were donated following his death, a "final act which [was to] embetter the lives of dozens of people", said Mr Edwards.

Mitigating, Jason Pitter KC said his client had previously made "a positive contribution to society" and was "somebody who is capable of real acts of kindness".

"His behaviour that night was wholly out of character. Up until the incident they were enjoying each other's company."

Mr Pitter said the attack lasted "four or five seconds" and Philip "didn't intend injuries as severe or approaching the severity of those suggested".

Judge Howard Crowson said there was no sentence he could impose "that will be felt adequate" by Mr Hiscoe's loved ones, many of whom were present in court.

He told Philip: "But for drink, it is unlikely that you or Robert would have resorted to throwing punches."

Philip, who has no previous convictions for violence, was given credit for his guilty plea and told he would serve "a proportion" of his sentence, "perhaps up to two thirds", before being considered for release from prison.

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