Tourist jailed after killing dad-of-three with vodka bottle on Prague stag do

Daily Record

17-05-2025

A German man has been jailed for seven years following the death of David 'Dai' Richards in Prague in September last year.
A man who killed a dad-of-three in a "blind attack" with a vodka bottle has been jailed for seven years.
David 'Dai' Richards was in the centre of Prague for a stag do on September 21 last year when he and his friends came into contact with another group of tourists.
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Joel Hoppe, a 27-year-old German, hit the 31-year-old dad with a blow so strong he fell to the floor and died in hospital from his injury.
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David, from Mountain Ash in Rhondda Cynon Taf, was dad to Aurora, aged four, Bear, two, and one-year-old Vienna. His family described him as an "absolutely amazing father, partner, son, brother, and friend" who was the "glue of the family".
Hoppe was s entenced to seven years behind bars and was ordered to pay 4.7 million crowns (£158,758) to Mr Richards' family and banned him from the Czech Republic for 10 years.
The German reportedly told the court: 'Not a day goes by that I don't think about the late David and his children. I will accept whatever sentence you give me.'
He also mentioned Mr Richards' relatives, who attended the hearing, saying: "It breaks my heart to see these people here today.
Czech news outlet Odkryto had reported that Hoppe pleaded guilty to the fatal GBH and disorderly conduct, admitting he acted in a fit of rage and under the influence of alcohol and drugs.
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Judge Daniella Sarah Sotolářová imposed a sentence of seven years, saying: "We also believed that you did not want to cause the death of the victim."
Czech Police spokesman Jan Daněk said of the attack: "At first, everything was calm and the tourists were chatting normally. Then there was a rift between them and one of them hit the other on the head with a vodka bottle. The blow was so strong that the injured person immediately fell to the ground and unfortunately died in hospital."
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A post-mortem examination by a doctor in Prague gave a provisional cause of death as brain trauma, swelling, and haemorrhaging, the Mirror reports.
Pontypridd coroner Patricia Morgan opened an inquest in the UK last October and adjourned it for a "full investigation" to take place.
In a statement last September, his sister-in-law Tammy Sheehan, cousin Gemma Thomas, and partner Jola Simms said: "It wasn't a fight like what I think some people are thinking – it was a blind attack.
"From the attack he actually passed away from blunt force trauma. David was talking to locals in the street when he took a blow to the back of the head."
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