Dean Skillin: Mother shares CCTV of moment son is killed by single punch to the head

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A mother has shared CCTV footage of the moment her son was killed by a single punch to his head.

Dean Skillin, 20, died after he was hit by 25-year-old boxing enthusiast Brandon Sillence outside a hotel in Bangor, Wales, on 9 September 2020.

In CCTV of the attack, Sillence can be seen walking up to Mr Skillin from behind and striking him on the side of his head, causing him to fall to the ground.

Mr Skillin had initially been seen acting as a peacemaker between his cousin and another man before the attack took place.

Sillence was acquitted of murder and found guilty of manslaughter in December 2021. He was jailed for 10 years.

Mr Skillin’s mother, Becky White, admitted she found it hard to share the video, but said she needed to because “people minimise these one-punch crimes”.

“No one wants to see the moment their son dies,” she said. “Sharing the video brought it all back to me.”

Since his death, Mr Skillin’s family have started a campaign calling for one-punch killing offences to be treated as murder. Their petition for tougher sentences has been signed by more than 18,000 people.

Ms White added: “They say the fist is not a weapon, but when it is those of a boxer, it is a weapon. Why is the law protecting violent men? We need a law specifically for this, that says if you kill someone unprovoked you should get eight to 15 years.”

In a Facebook post, she said: “I wanted to put it out there that when my son was killed there was no fight or words exchanged between Dean and Brandon.

“What sort of coward hits someone from behind and leaves him on the floor, then walks away knowing the damage he had done?

“As the judge said he was willing to punch his own shadow that night which resulted in my son’s death, and affected our family lives forever.”