Man who fatally punched student in hot chip brawl sheds tears to victim’s family
A man found guilty of the manslaughter of a student during a brawl over stolen hot chips has made an astonishing statement in court.
A coward-puncher found guilty of the manslaughter of a student during a brawl over stolen hot chips has mouthed he is “sorry” to the family of the victim in court.
Ricky Lefoe was found guilty of killing Ivan Susin outside a Gold Coast kebab shop in September 2019, after his mate stole a hot chip from Mr Susin’s friends.
In the resulting brawl, the 29-year-old Brazilian student was floored by a haymaker punch from Mr Lefoe.
“Some stolen chips has resulted in the death of a 29-year-old man living in the Gold Coast, out on a night with his friends,” Detective Sergeant Noel Jones told waiting media after the verdict was delivered.
Mr Lefoe had pleaded not guilty to Mr Susin’s manslaughter, insisting he was trying to break up the fight and was “scared” for the safety of his friend Shaun Simpson.
But a Supreme Court jury deliberated for less than two hours before returning a unanimous verdict on Wednesday.
An emotional Mr Lefoe mouthed “I’m sorry” to members of Mr Susin’s family, who were seated in the back of the public gallery.
He has been remanded in custody and will face sentencing at a later date – expected to be weeks away.
Mr Susin died from a head injury caused by Lefoe, who punched him during the brawl in Surfers Paradise on September 30, 2019.
The confrontation unfolded after Lefoe’s friend Shaun Simpson stole food from two people sitting on a nearby bench.
Mr Susin had attempted to intervene in the brawl and threw a punch at Mr Simpson, but missed “by a country mile”, the court heard.
Lefoe’s fatal punch is captured moments later on CCTV, knocking Mr Susin unconscious.
He died in hospital 11 days later.
Lefoe’s defence counsel had argued his actions were reasonable in the circumstances as he was trying to defend his friend and break up the fight.
But crown prosecutor Elizabeth Kelso said Lefoe’s true motivation was to keep the fight confined to Mr Simpson and the other man, stating he had “no concern” that his friend would die or suffer grievous bodily harm during the brawl.
Speaking to media outside court, Sergeant Jones said Ivan had been taken away from his family at the prime of his life over “something extremely silly”.
“People need to be aware that this is the sobering reality of punching people,” Sergeant Jones said.
“People see a lot of movies where people just get up, but this is not the reality.
“People will fall and hit their head, and they will never regain consciousness.”
Sergeant Jones said Mr Susin’s family – who had flown in from Brazil to attend proceedings – were “extremely devastated”.
“It’s been a very tough three years for them … (Ivan) was a very well-loved young man,” he said.
“Today is a bit of closure for them, it’s very overwhelming for them at the moment.”