UK3 min(s) read
A man plunged to his death after a friend pushed him 12ft to the ground in a Christmas party prank that went horribly wrong in 2021.
Conner Groom, 22, fell 3.7m from a bay at Topgolf in Chigwell, Essex, during a work Christmas party on December 21, 2021, after a friend pushed him while messing about after “drinking heavily”.
According to an inquest, colleagues from a bricklaying company arrived at a golf driving range in Chigwell, Essex, at 7PM, ordered drinks at the bar, and were taken to the first floor of the two-story building.
The party was reportedly “having a laugh and a joke” by pushing each other into the safety net at the edge of the golfing bay.
Staff had warned the group on several occasions to stop “messing around”, Detective Inspector Lydia George told the hearing.
She also recounted the tragic turn of events to the room. Groom was shoved onto the safety netting twice before his fatal fall, and he had even joined in the game, pushing one of his friends into it.
George revealed that at 10:08PM, the 22-year-old lined up to take a shot and his friend told a member of the group he was going to push him.
Reportedly, the friend responsible, who has not been publicly named, came “running from behind” Groom and pushed him moments after Groom had swung for a ball. After stumbling over the safety net, he fell around 12 feet and landed face-first on the driving range below.
According to the detective, Groom’s foot became stuck in the netting for a moment as he fell, meaning he had “no control whatsoever over how he landed.”
Security guard Dion McKenzie said his friend rushed down the stairs and repeatedly said to Groom: “I’m sorry, I’m sorry," as he lay on the floor with blood coming from his nose.
Groom was taken to hospital but died five weeks later in January 2022. His cause of death was listed as hypoxic brain injury due to traumatic spinal cord injury.
The friend who pushed the young tradesman was arrested on suspicion of causing grievous bodily harm without intent, but his charge was later dropped as Groom’s family did not want to pursue a prosecution.
Coroner Lincoln Brookes would conclude that Groom died due to a misadventure resulting from “inebriated but not malicious horseplay.”
He added: “I entirely accept this was due to good spirits and there was nothing malicious.”
Groom’s parents reportedly did not press charges because “they believed that Conner would not have wanted to support any action over him as they are good friends.”
