Victim of senseless attack Jack Jermy-Doyle lost his twin brother Harry to depression four years ago

The senseless killing of Jack Jermy-Doyle is the second tragedy to tear his family apart.

Legal assistant Jack lost his win brother Harry four years ago to suicide.

Harry Jermy-Doyle took his own life in July 2019 after suffering from depression.

In the wake of Harry’s death Jack spoke to the Post in a bid to raise awareness of suicide and prevention.

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He had launched a fundraising drive for Mental Health Foundation through a Facebook donation page and wanted  to urge anyone contemplating taking their own life to seek help instead.

Speaking just days after his brother’s death Jack said: "Depression and suicide are one of the biggest killers in men and my twin brother, Harry, is the most recent of suicides in the Chorley area.

"Including my brother, three men in a 10 mile radius have taken their own lives in the past two to three weeks and that is shocking,

"I wanted to put something on Facebook to raise awareness. If anyone wants to take their own life, I would urge them not to. It may get rid of their pain, but it only passes to other family members. It is not something you should want to put your family through."

He added: "If you brought him into a room he would always make conversation and would have a joke.

"He was a manic depressive but he was also confident and happy in front of everyone else. We, as a family were aware of his mental health and he had moved back to Clayton Brook for a while after living in Worcester. 

READ MORE: Killers jailed for attack on trainee barrister face years behind bars

Watch the moment killers of Jack Jermy-Doyle flee the scene shouting 'who wants it?'

"He moved back to Worcester two months ago and the day before he died he talked about his new job as a chef and moving in with his girlfriend. We feel bad because we took our eyes off him, but it shows how hidden the signs can be.

"It is important to raise awareness for people thinking about suicide or somebody watching out for someone and may not realise how bad they could be."

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Mr Jermy-Doyle was out with a friend on the night of August 12, 2023. They started the night in Chorley before heading into Preston city centre.

At trial, evidence was produced by the prosecution to show that throughout that night both Jake Parkinson, 22, and Jak Fairclough, 29, had been involved in aggressive behaviour and had been seen in and out of bars making a nuisance of themselves and fighting.

At around 2.30am on August 12, 2023, Jack and his friend were in the area of Flag Market. He was ahead of his friend, who was sat on a bench, and Jack was approached by Parkinson and Fairclough.

Parkinson delivered a blow to Jack's stomach. Almost immediately after that, Fairclough punched him in the face.

The blow to his face knocked the 25-year-old to the ground where he banged his head and was knocked unconscious.

Fairclough and Parkinson did nothing to assist their victim, and instead they fled the scene leaving Jack's friend to seek help and call the emergency services.

Despite the best efforts of paramedics and staff at Royal Preston Hospital, Jack failed to regain consciousness and died from head injuries on August 14 - just two weeks before his 26th birthday.

A postmortem confirmed that he died from a blunt force injury to the back of his head, consistent with his head hitting the ground.

The police investigation uncovered a pattern of aggressive behaviour by Parkinson and Fairclough throughout the night and early hours of the morning that culminated in Jack's tragic death.

Today the pair were jailed for a total of 14 years.

Jake Parkinson, 22, of Bow Lane, Preston, had denied manslaughter but was found guilty of killing Jack Jermy-Doyle following a trial at Preston Crown Court. He was sentenced to eight years behind bars.

His friend Jak Fairclough, 29, of Blackpool Road, Preston, had previously pleaded guilty to a charge of manslaughter at an earlier hearing. He was sentenced to six years and four months.