Man Beaten to Death with Plasterer’s Whisk in Shocking M25 Service Station Brawl
A man was savagely bludgeoned to death with a plasterer’s whisk during a violent fight at Cobham Services on the M25, a court heard yesterday.
Horrific Attack at Cobham Services
20-year-old Hughie Saunders, from Stanford-le-Hope, Essex, suffered a catastrophic head injury during the fracas on 26 June. He died two days later. The incident unfolded at Cobham Services in Surrey, where Hughie had stopped with family members while returning from a wedding in Wales.
Two Men Deny Murder Charges
Mikey Coyle, 21, from Barnes, south-west London, and Simon Baker, 22, from Outwood, Surrey, both deny murder. The Old Bailey heard the defendants “were spoiling for a confrontation.”
The fight sparked after Coyle and Baker pulled up in a van loaded with building tools, recognised Hughie, then deliberately blocked his car by going the wrong way round a roundabout. Heated words turned into a fight that spilled inside the petrol station shop.
Shocking CCTV Footage Shows Weapon Grab
CCTV showed Coyle return to the van and arm himself with a large shovel while Baker grabbed a plasterer’s whisk before returning to the fight. Coyle reportedly shouted, “I’m the man, I’m the man.”
Baker later handed himself into police on 29 June, claiming he acted in self-defence. Coyle went to police days later but didn’t disclose who he was with or what took place. The trial is ongoing.
