Michael Riddiough-Allen, 32, died after he was stabbed on 30 April 2023
By Brodie Owen
BBC News, South West
A man has been found guilty of murdering a rugby player in Cornwall.
Jake Hill, 25, stabbed Michael Riddiough-Allen, 32, outside Eclipse Nightclub in Bodmin on 30 April 2023.
Chelsea Powell, 22, from Bodmin, was found not guilty of murder and manslaughter, but guilty of perverting the course of justice.
Tia Taylor, 22, also from Bodmin, initially denied three charges but pleaded guilty to manslaughter and perverting the course of justice.
A court order prevented the reporting of Taylor’s pleas until after the verdicts for her co-defendants.
Truro Crown Court previously heard Hill picked up a hunting knife he had hidden in a hedge as he left the club at about 03:00 BST.
Image source, CPS
Tia Taylor, Jake Hill and Chelsea Powell had been in the Eclipse nightclub before a fight started outside
Prosecutors alleged when a fight broke out in the street outside the venue, Hill used it to either stab or slash six victims.
Hill, from Bodmin, was found guilty of stabbing four other people in the same incident, but he was found not guilty of stabbing a sixth person.
Mr Riddiough-Allen, who was the fifth person to be stabbed, died at the scene after suffering a fatal wound to his stomach.
He was unarmed and had been trying to separate the various fighting groups when he was stabbed.
A six-week trial heard further allegations of attempting to pervert the course of justice against Powell and Taylor came from statements they gave to the police after the stabbings.
Jurors reached the verdict following several days of deliberation and a ruling from the judge that they could reach a majority decision.
A bail application for Powell brought by her legal team at the end of the trial was refused.
Det Con Emma Norrish, from Devon and Cornwall Police, said: “This has been a long and complex investigation and trial and we now await the sentencing of the three defendants.
“I hope the outcome reached today will begin to bring some closure to Michael’s family and friends, and to the surviving victims.”
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