Pair jailed for violent conspiracy which ultimately led to death of Matthew Daulby

Monday, December 22, 2025

Three men have today (22nd December) been sentenced for conspiring to commit disorder which ultimately led to the murder of teenager Matthew Daulby (Pictured bottom right).

Samuel Hopgood, Alfie Forsyth (pictured top right), and James Evans (pictured middle right) were all unanimously found guilty of conspiracy to commit violent disorder following a three-week trial at Preston Crown Court which concluded on 5th November.

Our officers attended Railway Road in Ormskirk at 12.05am on 29th July 2023 to reports of an ongoing disturbance. 

Matthew was found a short distance away with serious stab injuries. Despite the best efforts of the emergency services, Matthew sadly died later in hospital.

Following separate trials at Preston Crown Court, 22-year-old Thomas Dures and 20-year-old Henry Houghton were both found guilty of Matthew’s murder and jailed for life. Dures must serve a minimum of 23 years before he is eligible to go before the Parole Board, and Houghton must serve a minimum of 20 years.

Our enquiries found that on 28th July 2003 a man had been assaulted by Dures near a pub in Wheatsheaf Walk, Ormskirk, after confirming he was friends with Evans.

The man called Evans to tell him what had occurred.

At that point, Evans was in city centre Liverpool. Matthew, Hopgood and Forsyth were in Maghull. Evans immediately travelled from the city centre via his home address to the Maghull area to meet the others.

The man who had been assaulted by Dures then sent a Snapchat video to a group chat, containing the defendants, which outlined that he had been attacked.

There were then a number of messages outlining that the defendants in Maghull would go to Ormskirk to seek revenge on Dures.

This was evidenced on the group chat by Hopgood stating: “we’re ready now,’ and a further message in which he stated: “at the Gregs.”

As they were heading towards Ormskirk, the man who had been assaulted was giving them updates as to the whereabouts of Dures and Houghton and how many people they were with.

It was by engaging in this behaviour that the defendants conspired to commit violent disorder.

It was shortly after they arrived in Railway Road that the fatal fight occurred, during the course of which Matthew was struck with a sock containing a rock by Houghton and was fatally stabbed by Dures.

Another man was also stabbed during the incident and attended hospital. Evans and two other people suffered injuries thought to have been inflicted by a knife, but did not attend hospital.

None of the defendants ever came forward to say what had happened to Matthew.

Following consultation with the Crown Prosecution Service, the defendants were charged with conspiring to commit violent disorder.

Evans, 21, of Bartlet Close, Liverpool, was jailed for 34 months; Forsyth, 21, of Lathom Drive Liverpool, was jailed for 34 months; and Hopgood, 21, of Green Lane, Maghull; was sentenced to 24 months, suspended for 20 months.

In a victim impact statement to the court, Matthew’s dad Gary wrote: “I am providing this statement to explain the impact that the conspiracy to commit violent disorder has had on me and my family.

“What was supposed to be just a normal Friday night out for Matthew around Maghull, before a holiday to Ibiza the following Tuesday. The night very quickly turned into something that would change so many lives forever. Most of all ours!

“The knowledge that a conspiracy existed and contributed to Matthews death has left me and my family totally shocked. Throughout this trial I have learned that there had been an earlier altercation with Thomas Dures in Ormskirk and other events prior to this night.

“I still have more questions than answers. Here are a few:

“Why didn’t anyone take a breath and say why are we doing this?

“Why didn’t you ask each other what the consequences of going to Ormskirk to fight could be?

“Why didn’t anyone think about the impact of these actions?

“Why didn’t any of Matthew’s friends give a statement to help their mate and the investigation?  Your mate had been murdered and you all said nothing!

“And I still do not know fully what the beef was that started all of this. Not one of Matthew’s mates have ever told me!

“The loss of Matthew has ruined our lives. We now live a very different life to the life we had before. Birthdays, family events and Christmas`s no longer hold the same feeling or enjoyment without Matthew being there.

“Everything that happened that fateful night has impacted every single part of our lives. Matthew didn’t deserve what happened to him. He had just turned 19 and had his whole life ahead him. He is the biggest loser here today. As a family we try every day to pick up the pieces and keep moving forward with Matthew in our hearts.

“The pain we feel cannot be measured by any legal sentence. The loss of Matthew is permanent, and the effects of all this will be felt for the rest of our lives. Matthew deserved so much more than what was taken from him.

“Our lives will never be the same, and we will continue to carry the weight of this tragedy forever.”

DCI Andy Fallow, of our Force Major Investigation Team, said: “I welcome today’s sentences which holds each defendant accountable for their criminal conduct in late July 2023. While I accept that none of them went to Ormskirk thinking that Matthew would lose his life, it was their reckless criminal conspiracy that contributed to this tragic outcome.

“I hope that young men across the county take notice of this case and the devastating consequences of choosing violence. A family has been left without a son, brother, cousin and nephew; two men have been jailed for life and two young men have been given significant custodial sentences custodial sentences.”

Eight men previously charged with conspiring to commit violent disorder were found not guilty following two separate trials.