Norwich clubland attack victim has 'lost' his previous life

David Constant suffered injuries so severe he had to have part of his skull removed to save his life following the attack by Achilles Lawrence Gate'te on St Vedast Street, off Prince of Wales Road in the early hours of March 19 last year.

Today Gate'te was sentenced to seven and half years for his ultra-violent rampage through clubland. 

Police on St Vedast Street, Norwich where the attack took place (Image: Peter Walsh, Newsquest)

Mr Constant, who had been out with friends when he was "taken off his feet" by a punch delivered with such force by Gate'te he fell back and hit his head with a "sickening thud".

He was rushed to the N&N before being transferred to Addenbrooke's while Gate'te later texted a friend to say "we killing people".

Achilles Lawrence Gate'te (Image: Newsquest)

Mr Constant appeared at Norwich Crown Court to read out a victim impact statement before Gate'te was sentenced.

Gate'te, of Cunningham Road, Norwich, had been found guilty following a trial earlier this year of grievous bodily harm and two counts of assault following a series of violent incidents.

Scene of attack in St Vedast Street, Norwich (Image: Peter Walsh, Newsquest)

Bravely reading his statement an emotional Mr Constant said: "My life as I know was shattered because of an unprovoked attack."

He said over the past year he was "still trying to recover as best I could".

But he said he had "permanent damage to my brain" which would affect him for the rest of his life.

Mr Constant told the court he had been in a coma and was "not expected to survive".

He said he was told he was "the most unwell patient in the whole of East Anglia" adding staff "couldn't tell my family whether I would live or die for two days". 

The victim, who is in his 20s, said the brain injuries he had suffered meant he had "no understanding of what had happened to me".

He did not know he had part of his skull removed and was told by medical staff if they had not done so "you would be dead".

Mr Constant, a physio, said he has felt "useless" and "like a complete burden on people around me".

He feels "overwhelmed by grief at the loss of my previous life" adding "I will never be the person I was or could've been."

Scene of attack in St Vedast Street, Norwich (Image: Peter Walsh, Newsquest)

The incident has resulted in "severe panic attacks" when he goes out while he said his injuries had "changed my personality permanently".

A sufferer of severe depression, Mr Constant also has post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and has also had suicidal thoughts due to the uncertainty about the future.

Will Carter, prosecuting, said Mr Constant had not been at the trial because "so grave had his injuries been that he couldn't remember anything at all about the incident itself".

The prosecutor said the injuries were so serious medical teams "thought he was going to die".

Sentencing Gate'te to seven-and-a-half years in a young offenders institution (YOI), Judge Andrew Shaw said: "You were out looking for trouble and I'm sure you were determined to find it".

Judge Andrew Shaw (Image: Newsquest)

After an initial confrontation with Mr Constant, who had done nothing wrong, Judge Shaw said the defendant returned to exact his revenge. 

"You punched him as hard as you possibly could with a real haymaker of a punch.

"You hit him so hard that he lost consciousness before he fell to the ground and that being so he was unable to protect himself as he hit the ground with a sickening thud."

But after delivering a "single punch of unprecedented ferocity" the judge said Gate'te "cared not" and later texted a friend to let them know "we killing people".

Scene of attack in St Vedast Street (Image: Peter Walsh, Newsquest)

Commending Mr Constant for his "utmost courage" in reading out his "harrowing" victim statement Judge Shaw said it described the "devastating impact" Gate'te's actions had "on a promising young man".

Jonathan Goodman, representing the defendant, said Gate'te was just 18 at the time of the attack.

He said the actions were "out of character" for Gate'te who had no previous convictions and was not a man who was "not a man with a history of violent behaviour".