Apprentice jockey denied bail after appearing in court charged with murder following fight outside a Newmarket pub

Jockey Levi Williams was denied bail at a preliminary hearing at Cambridge Crown Court on Thursday after being charged with murder.

Williams, 25, was charged with murdering a 71-year-old man, named on Thursday as Richard Wingrove, during a fight on the High Street in Newmarket on March 8.

A conditional bail application, which would have included Williams being the subject of GPS tracking and a curfew, was not opposed by the Crown Prosecution Service, but the order was not accepted by Judge Mark Bishop.

He said: “I am the arbiter of whether bail is granted and the presumption is against bail in the case of murder. I am unable to reach a conclusion against that and therefore bail is refused.”

Williams, who wore a long-sleeved grey polo jumper and light blue jeans as he sat alone in the dock, became tearful at times during the hearing, which lasted 90 minutes.

The apprentice, who completed an 18-month suspension from riding in November last year after testing positive for cocaine for a second time, had been arrested on March 8 following a fight between four men on the High Street.

Williams and another man, aged 23, were arrested on suspicion of causing grievous bodily harm after being involved in the altercation outside the Golden Lion pub having been drinking in the nearby Waggon And Horses pub between morning and evening shifts.

Wingrove was taken to hospital in Cambridge after emergency services had been called at 3.40pm on March 8. Suffolk Police stated on Wednesday that he had died in hospital on Tuesday.

Following the death of Wingrove, Williams was rearrested by police on Tuesday and subsequently charged with murder. 

A fourth man, aged 45, was also taken to hospital in Cambridge but released on the same evening. He was later arrested on suspicion of affray and bailed until June 9. The 23-year-old man has been bailed until June 5.

A plea and trial preparation hearing was set by the judge to take place on May 9 with a proposed trial date, described as being “tentative” by the judge, scheduled for September 15.

During Thursday's hearing the court was told that Williams had "dreamed" of being a jockey since he was a child and had graduated from the British Racing School aged 16. He went on to work for Eve Johnson Houghton and John Best before first moving to Epsom and later to Newmarket to continue his career.

Williams rode his first winner in January 2019 and has recorded 11 subsequent successes from a total of 156 rides in Britain. However, he has also twice had his licence suspended by the disciplinary panel, having first tested positive for cocaine and cannabis in 2021 and then positive again for cocaine in May 2023.