THE mother of a Salisbury man who was killed in one punch has backed a new campaign encouraging people to step back from conflict.
Wiltshire Police launched its new 'Walk Away' campaign on Monday, March 11, in a bid to prevent deaths and serious injuries caused by a person being assaulted on a night out.
The campaign encourages self-control, support from friends and for men to walk away from heated situations before the situation becomes violent.
It also calls on friends and bystanders of potential offenders, as well as members of the public, to de-escalate situations when it’s safe to do so.
Two people have died as a result of single-punch assaults across Wiltshire in the last five years, one of them being Salisbury man Freddie Fontete-Jones.
Connor Poole, 25, was jailed for nine years last year for punching Mr Fontete-Jones, 23, on February 20, 2022. He died in hospital two days later after suffering three heart attacks.
Read more: Freddie Fontete-Jones: One-punch killer jailed for 'vicious attack'
As previously reported, Mr Fontete-Jones came to the aid of his friends outside Chick-O-Land as a "peace-maker" after an altercation broke out at around 3am.
Pool approached Mr Fontete-Jones from the side and punched him in the head, causing him to fall backwards and hit his head on the concrete of New Canal.
Detective Chief Inspector Simon Childe, who worked on Mr Fontete-Jones' case, said working with families in cases where their loved one has been killed has been "one of the hardest things" he has encountered in his 23 years with the force.
"It's never easy, it's never the same. You're telling a family their loved one has been killed and in this case for absolutely no reason, not that having a reason would make it any better," said DCI Childe.
Gifty Tetteh, Mr Fontete-Jones' mother, said the pain of losing her son has not gone away but she is willing to put it aside if it allows her to "save one person's life".
Admitting she gets flashbacks to the night her son died whenever she sees arguments in public, Mrs Tetteh said: “If you go out there, drink but don’t drink too much. If you know there is a heated argument going on, just walk away and go home in peace.
"I’m not trying to tell them not to help your friend if your friend is in trouble. You are there to support them, they are there to support you. So my advice is if you go out and have too much to drink, just go home."
Most incidents of one-punch manslaughter are caused by small triggers, something as basic as an error in judgement, a spilled drink, or a rude comment.
Offenders and victims often do not know each other beforehand and in most cases, the offender has no criminal background.
Superintendent Guy Elkins, area commander for Swindon, made it clear the campaign is not encouraging people to intervene in fights.
He explained: "I want people to tell their friends who are raising their anger or aggression towards another to say come on, enough is enough, we are going home."
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