Ely man jailed for attack that ended boxer’s career

A man who launched a brutal unprovoked attack on an aspiring boxer in Cardiff city centre, ending his victim’s professional dreams, has been jailed for eight months.

Mathew Evans, 22, of Kenwood Road, Ely, punched a 19-year-old man in the face on Queen Street in April, causing his jaw to dislodge and leaving his mouth “drooling blood.”

Prosecutor Charles Archer told Cardiff Crown Court on October 23 that as Evans walked away from the teenager, he said “I did that to you.” He was then caught on CCTV demonstrating the punch to his friends.

The victim suffered devastating injuries, requiring major surgery to insert metal plates into his jaw. Doctors told him he will never be able to box again professionally.

In his victim personal statement, he said: “Every day since, I have been in pain. My jaw constantly hurts and I suffer with frequent infections. I am unable to eat solid foods, and I have permanent nerve damage to my cheek and lip. I haven’t been out with my friends since. I feel paranoid, and I am constantly looking over my shoulder. I have nightmares. I struggle to find work because I am pain and fragile. Giving a statement to the police was a big deal in my community and now I feel isolated. I’ve started speaking to a few people about it but I worry that others see me as a grass which has made me feel alone.”

Despite being released on conditional bail with a ban from Cardiff city centre between 9pm and 8am, Evans was later spotted on a night out at Heidi’s Bier Bar.

Judge Lucy Crowther said: “You just ran up to him and punched him in the face without warning in utterly cowardly attack. He was struggling with pain from the shock of what happened when you said to him something like ‘Are you going now? Are you going back? And then you said ‘I did that to you.’ You were seen on CCTV apparently demonstrating the punch showing off to your friends what you’ve done. He had to go to hospital. He broke his jaw in a number of places. He’s had to have an operation. He’s had to have metal plates put inside his jaw, he’s had teeth removed, he’s had recurrent infections – all the result of what you did that night when you were showing off.”

Evans was sentenced to eight months imprisonment, with Judge Crowther saying she hopes the sentence acts as a lesson to others.