Jordan Sinnott: Three men jailed as family left with “immeasurable grief”
The heavily pregnant fiancée of footballer Jordan Sinnott has spoken of her immeasurable grief as her partner’s killers were sentenced (31 July), saying her unborn baby will never get the chance to know its father.
Two men will spend a combined 19 years, three months in prison for manslaughter, while a third man was jailed for 14 months for affray, following a sentencing hearing at Nottingham Crown Court.
The Matlock Town FC footballer died in hospital after suffering a fractured skull and brain damage in an assault in the centre of Retford, at around 2am on 25 January earlier this year (2020).
Nottinghamshire Police launched a murder investigation after the 25-year-old died in hospital shortly after the assault.
As the men found guilty of his death were sentenced, Mr Sinnott’s partner, Kelly Bossons, talked of living her worst nightmare in a victim impact statement read on her behalf.
“Raising a child is not something I planned to do by myself, but Jordan’s killers have given me no other choice.
"They have not only ruined my life but have denied our unborn child the chance of ever getting to meet its father. All I hope is that they never get the chance to destroy another family the way they have destroyed mine."
Kai Denovan, 22, of Collins Walk in Retford was handed a sentence of 11 years for his part in the assault. He had pleaded not guilty to manslaughter, affray and common assault but was found guilty on 28 July following a trial at Nottingham Crown Court.
Cameron Matthews, 21, of Denman Close in Retford, pleaded guilty to manslaughter at a hearing on 6 July after CCTV showed him striking the Matlock Town player. He will spend eight years, three months years in prison.
A third man, Sean Nicholson, 22, of Beechways, Retford pleaded guilty to affray following Jordan’s death at a hearing on 2 March. He was sentenced to 14 months.
Speaking after the sentencing, Mr Sinnott’s mother, Mel Tait, said: “To lose Jordan in this way has left us all devastated and completely heartbroken.
"He was a beautiful soul who never saw the bad in anyone and always put others first. Nothing will ever be the same in our lives without him.
“The only consolation we can take from this, is that the people who killed Jordan have had their liberty taken away from them. They have to live with their actions and as a family we will never forgive them.
“We can only hope that it sends a clear message, that violence towards others is cruel, unacceptable and leaves a devastating effect on people lives.
“We’ve lost a son, a brother, a fiancé, a grandson, uncle, nephew, cousin and a true friend to so many. But, more heartbreaking than anything, we’ve lost Jordan as a father to his unborn child. What a great daddy he would have been.”
Mr Sinnott was on a night out with two friends when he first came across Cameron Matthews, Kai Denovan and Sean Nicholson inside a pub in Churchgate, Retford.
There was a disagreement before Denovan punched Mr Sinnott twice.
The two groups then went their separate ways, with Mr Sinnott and his friends leaving the pub and heading towards Retford’s Market Place.
Denovan and Matthews also left the pub and walked towards the Market Place, with Nicholson following behind. Once Matthews and Denovan caught up with Mr Sinnott, Denovan again punched Mr Sinnott before Matthews went on to punch him more than once, knocking him to the floor and causing fatal injuries.
Police were called to assist ambulance crews who were attempting to treat Mr Sinnott, a footballer with Matlock Town Football Club, after he was found unconscious following the incident at around 2am in the town’s Market Place.
Mr Sinnott died in hospital just before 6pm on Saturday 25 January, surrounded by his family.
Nottinghamshire Police launched an investigation with a team of detectives working tirelessly to see that justice was done. It involved speaking to dozens of witnesses, trawling through hours of CCTV footage and investigating a number of forensic opportunities.