Punch a 'likely' factor in singer's death - inquest

Bill Witham, who performed as Napper Swan, was a well-known musician in south Essex

A punch suffered by a musician days before he was found collapsed could not be ruled out as a cause of his death, a coroner concluded.

Bill Witham, 68, was seen unresponsive on the ground in Hullbridge, near Southend, on 12 September 2022.

Hospital scans later that day found Mr Witham had a bleed on the brain. He died 13 days later.

Recording an open conclusion, Essex’s senior coroner Lincoln Brookes said the cause of the bleed was not certain.

Mr Witham had performed at the Smuggler’s Den pub in Hullbridge on the afternoon of 11 September where he had been “off form”, the coroner’s court in Chelmsford heard.

The inquest was told he had complained of having a “splitting headache” and that he “didn’t seem to be as quick-witted as usual”.

He was found collapsed outside the gates of Lovedown Farm, on Lower Road in Hullbridge, at about 05:20 GMT the next day, where he had previously carried out some painting and decorating work for a friend.

‘Vulnerable’

Mr Witham was initially taken to Southend Hospital before being transferred to the Royal London Hospital.

Nathaniel Cary, a pathologist, said he died from complications arising from a bleed on the brain on 25 September.

Mr Cary told the inquest that medication Mr Witham had taken, and clogging in the arteries of his heart, made him “more vulnerable” to collapsing.

The court heard that Luke Slade, a friend of Mr Witham, had been arrested on suspicion of causing him grievous bodily harm.

Mr Slade, 34, had punched Mr Witham and left him with a black eye in a dispute over food five days prior to him being found collapsed, the hearing was told.

Det Ch Insp Greg Wood, of Essex Police, told the inquest that the Crown Prosecution Service had determined there was not enough evidence to prosecute and the investigation ended.

The coroner said the alleged assault was “perhaps the most likely explanation” as to why Mr Witham, from Southend-on-Sea, had the bleed on the brain.

“But, to my mind it doesn’t cross the threshold of probability to exclude any other evidence,” he said.

The coroner said he accepted the medical cause of death but “could not be sure” what had provoked it.

He added that it could have been caused by Mr Witham suffering trauma from the punch or from an injury suffered when he collapsed.

In a statement read at the hearing, Mr Witham’s daughter, Lisa Brown, said her dad was “one of a kind”.

“He would always help and give someone what was in his pocket and go without it himself,” she said.

“His friends said how wonderful he was, how funny he was – one of a kind, the biggest heart and the biggest smile. He could light up the room.”

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