The man who died after being punched in a brawl outside a pub became "unwittingly involved" in a confrontation "instigated by others", a coroner has ruled.
Johanna Thompson made the comments at the end of an inquest into the death of Neil McGibbon, who was struck in the face after being drawn into an altercation with a group of young men who had been kicked out of the Kings Head pub in Loddon, on November 10, 2023.
The 58-year-old fell backwards, hit his head on the kerb and lost consciousness. He died in hospital three days later.
Despite a major police investigation and a string of arrests, no one has ever been charged in connection with the violence.
An inquest at Norfolk Coroner's Court this week has heard the circumstances which led to the confrontation, including the sequence of strikes from those involved which led up to the punch which caused Mr McGibbon to fall.
Ms Thompson, the area coroner, declined to give a 'shortform' conclusion - such as accidental death, misadventure or unlawful killing - and instead provided a narrative one.
She said: "Mr McGibbon became unwittingly involved in the altercation instigated by others opposite the Kings Head pub on Bridge Street in Loddon on the evening of November 10, 2023.
"During the altercation he was punched on the face by another individual that caused him to fall to the ground, landing heavily.
"He sadly died of his head injury on November 13, 2023, at the Norfolk and Norwich Hospital.
"He died from injuries sustained due to being punched during an altercation instigated by others."
The inquest was told that the younger men had been thrown out of the pub by landlord Phillip Taylor, a friend of Mr McGibbon's, for "not buying enough drinks" and saying he could smell cannabis on the men while they stood out in the smoking area.
Mr Taylor - known in the area as 'Bootsy' - went back into the pub and approached Mr McGibbon and his friend Geoffrey Noble, before all three left the pub and walked towards the young men.
Speaking in court, Hugo Blyth, one of the young men, described Mr Taylor being "very antagonistic" as he left the pub and said the older men were "stumbling over each other".
In a statement, Kieran Cook, a signmaker, who witnessed the brawl that evening, said he believed Mr Taylor was "heightening the situation" and "could have dealt with it better".
Mr Blyth added that things started to "simmer down" and the situation began to defuse when the older men started making jokes and Mr Noble held his arm around Mr Blyth.
Max Barber, another in the group who visited the pub, said Mr McGibbon was "trying to depress the situation" when he and Mr Taylor came out of the pub.
However, violence quickly erupted after Mr Blyth slipped out of Mr Noble's arms and Mr Noble threw a punch at Mr Blyth, who said the older man was "windmilling into the lads".
Brodie Smith, another of the young men, said in court that he subsequently struck Mr Noble, who fell down onto the floor.
At this point, Mr McGibbon got involved in the bust-up and hit Harrison Byford twice, who responded by hitting Mr McGibbon on the left side of his face, causing him to fall.
Ms Thompson said: "Mr McGibbon hit Mr Byford twice and Mr Byford hit Mr McGibbon. Tragically Neil fell backwards and hit his head on the ground."
A police spokesman said: "The matter was investigated and the case presented to the Crown Prosecution Service who made the decision."
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