Tears of a killer: Moment cowardly one-punch thug bawls his eyes out to police after bashing innocent tradie to death
- Attacker sobbed in front of police after fatally punching a tradie
- Tyson Armstrong cried, ‘I just wish I walked the f*** away’
- Luke Francis, who was 29, died two days later after a brain bleed
A one-punch killer wept in a police interview after being arrested for a cowardly attack on a stranger at Melbourne’s Crown Casino.
Tyson Jordan Armstrong shook and sobbed in front of Victorian police telling them he was ‘so sorry’ and ‘I just wish I walked the f*** away’ in footage shared by the Herald Sun.
The 28 year old, who has pleaded guilty to manslaughter, trembled as he told police his unprovoked attack on concreter Luke Francis, 29, at Crown in March last year ‘changed my life in the blink of an eye’.
CCTV shown to the Supreme Court of Victoria showed a drunken Armstrong pushing Mr Francis against a railing before punching him in the jaw from behind as he walked through the food court.
Armstrong, who walked away from the scene without checking on his unconscious victim, broke down in tears when told by police that Mr Francis was on life support, and claimed he could not remember the attack.
Tyson Armstrong showed an outpouring of remorse after his arrest – trembling and crying before police (pictured) admitting he had assaulted the man
Luke Francis, who was 29, was on life support in hospital (pictured) with a bleed on the brain at the time of the interview but tragically died 24 hours later
Mr Francis’ family ended the life support after specialists at The Alfred hospital said the man was brain dead in the wake of the alcohol-fueled attack (pictured, Mr Francis with his sister Emily)
‘I’m never going to be able to forgive myself if he passes away,’ Armstrong said.
‘I feel selfish because I just want to see my family but I just feel like he might not see anyone again from my hands, and that’s what I can’t deal with, it’s not okay.’
The 29-year-old concreter was in hospital with a bleed on the brain at the time of the interview but died 24 hours later.
Mr Francis’s family ended the life support after specialists at The Alfred hospital said he was brain dead in the wake of the alcohol-fueled attack.
‘It’s just so hard to walk away these days … I just wish I could have walked out the door and gone to the hotel room,’ Armstrong sobbed.
He said he felt ‘so bad for him’ and didn’t want anyone to get hurt and struggled to remember the assault.
‘I can’t remember, I think I just grabbed him … I don’t remember what shirt he was wearing, or what he looked like … I don’t remember throwing a punch,’ he said.
But immediately after his arrest Armstrong also told police the victim had called him a ‘f***head’ and a ‘little dog’ and had invited him outside for a fight.
But the CCTV didn’t match up to his story and his own defence lawyer said he ‘saw what wasn’t there to be seen’.
Vision released by the Supreme Court revealed the pair had a five-second exchange on the casino floor before Armstrong followed him to the food court.
‘No matter what happens it’s just changed my life in a blink of an eye, I’m never going to be able to forgive myself if he passes away,’ Armstrong said
Mr Francis was knocked out from Armstrong’s punch and never regained consciousness.
Armstrong left the area and was captured on camera minutes after the violent assault walking with his cousin Joshua down a promenade away from the casino.
He was seen talking in an energetic way and giving his cousin a mock punch on the chin.
Supreme Court Justice Andrew Tinney said Armstrong was acting as though he had ‘no concerns in the world.’
Armstrong has pleaded guilty to manslaughter and is set to be sentenced at another date.
He faces a possible 25-year jail sentence.
Armstrong (pictured on Monday) faces a potential 25-year prison sentence
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