UK (Parliament Politics Magazine) – Family of dad fatally attacked at Sainsbury’s queue condemns killer’s prison term as a “disgrace,” calling for justice in shocking incident.
Three days after being hit by Demeish Williams, 30, outside the store on Upper Elmers End Road in Beckenham at roughly 8:30 p.m. on March 16, Andrew Clark, 43, passed away in a sanitarium.
Williams has spent five years and three months behind bars.
When Andrew informed him that he could not cut ahead of them in line, he came argumentative.
Following a brief altercation, Williams seized a facemask from his auto, awaited for Andrew outside the store, struck him formerly in the side of the head with an open win, and yelled,
” I told you to f *** ing apologise.”
On Thursday, December 18, Williams entered his judgment at Woolwich Crown Court.
Williams was told that” it should noway have happened” by Judge Andrew Lees.
Williams may return to the thoroughfares by September 2028 after serving up to two- thirds of his sentence before being eligible for parole, taking into account the time he has formerly spent on remand.
In court, Andrew’s cousins expressed dismay at the length of the judgment , calling it a” disgrace” and saying that” this country is a joke.”
In a statement issued to the press, Andrew’s family said:
“Today’s sentence brings some degree of closure after an unimaginable painful nine months for our family.
Andrew’s loss has had a profound and devastating impact on each of us and we continue to live with the consequences of his absence every day.
Andrew was killed in an unprovoked act of violence. Demiesh Williams, 30, pleaded guilty to manslaughter at Woolwich Crown Court and received 5 years and three months for the crime that took Andrew’s life.
We are sincerely grateful to the judge and the court for their thorough consideration of this case, and for recognising the seriousness of this offence.
For us as a family, this process has exposed the serious shortcomings within our outdated justice system.
Victims are too often left without the protection, transparency and fairness they deserve.
An archaic legal framework cannot meet the demands of modern society, nor the needs of victims, their families, friends and wider communities.
Overcrowded and under-funded prisons place pressure on the courts to sentence based on capacity rather than justice.
Without genuine accountability, true justice and meaningful reform, reoffending will continue and many more families may face the same devastation we have.
Andrew will always be remembered for his kindness, generosity, humour and love.
We respectfully ask the media to continue to honour our privacy, particularly that of our children, as we focus on our ongoing recovery as a family.”
The exact moment Williams made the decision to go back to Sainsbury’s and strike Andrew was captured on camera.
After leaving the store, Williams is seen sprinting across the street to his car, dropping his goods, donning a facemask, and coming back to attack Andrew.
A statement from Andrew’s daughter was read out in court during a previous hearing.
She wrote:
“I was 13-years-old when my dad was violently killed and I had to spend my 14th birthday without him.
My dad wasn’t just my dad, he was my best friend. He called me boss, because he said he would do anything for me.
Our bond was unbreakable from the first moment he held me. We did everything together.”
She asked Williams:
“Why did you have to do this to my dad? Why haven’t you shown any remorse. No apology. No explanation. Just silence.”
Andrew was referred to as “the man who held their family together” and a “brilliant dad.”
He had watched his team win the Carabao Cup final on TV that day and was a huge Newcastle supporter.
He told the court that it was one of the happiest days of his life, but an hour later he was attacked to death.
Andrew’s wife, Cairistine, told his killer:
“You took him from us that moment you chose to walk back from the car and inflict the violence that ended his life. Why did you come back? Why didn’t you walk away?
I will never understand why you came back that day. It was deathly dark and you left a small child in that car. When you went back to the car you didn’t leave. You didn’t check on the child. You put on a face covering and came back.
What type of man choses to kill rather than simply walking away? The type of man who is not a man but a monster.
You killed Andrew then cowardly ran away. You are a coward. You are a killer. You are a monster.”
“I do not want this life. This is the life you forced me to have. I do not want to live without my husband. My daughter does not want to live without her dad,” she said.
Cairistine told Williams:
“A monster destroyed my family. A monster killed my Andrew. That monster was you.
You will not receive a life sentence today but I have one. I will live with grief, trauma and loss for the rest of my life.”
Andrew’s sister, Lyndsey, said:
“Andrew was not only my brother but my strongest ally and greatest friend.”
He is an inspiration to his own daughter and his two nephews, she said.
“He achieved so much in his 43 years of living and we as a family have been so incredibly proud of him. He supported his wife and daughter and always protected them,”
she said.
“His wife was with him when he was attacked. It could only be described as demonic that a random man attacked Andrew at all, let alone her have to witness it.”
What charge did the defendant plead guilty to in court?
Demeish Williams contended shamefaced to manslaughter in the death of Andrew Clark. Charged originally with murder, Williams denied that but admitted the lower charge of manslaughter at Woolwich Crown Court on December 18, 2025.
The judge accepted the plea, condemning him to five times and three months for the single head poke that caused Clark’s fatal brain injury. The court noted the” one- punch” nature demanded intent to kill but carried profound consequences, sparing a full murder trial while addressing family impacts.
Williams, from Croydon and a father of three, denied murder but contended shamefaced to manslaughter; on December 18, 2025, Woolwich Crown Court doomed him to five times and three months, with Judge Andrew Lees noting the” profound impact” on Clark’s woman and young son amid family pleas for justice.