Stringfellow's bouncer 'kills punter' who touched lapdancer

A Stringfellow's bouncer murdered a drunken stag night reveller as he kicked him out of the club for touching a lapdancer, a court heard today.

Heavyweight boxer and martial arts expert Marcus Marriott killed 21-stone George MacDonald with a single punch as he threw him out of the famous London club for touching a stripper called Anna, the Old Bailey was told.

33-year old Marriott's blow shattered Mr MacDonald's jaw and sent him tumbling to the pavement in the West End's Long Acre, fracturing his skull as he landed, the court heard. He died minutes later.

But a passing police van saw the attack in the early hours of October 8 last year - and it was also captured on CCTV, said Dorian Lovell-Pank QC, prosecuting.

Marriott, of St John's Road, Chingford, denies murder and an alternative count of manslaughter.

The jury heard how 34-year old Mr MacDonald had been out on a friend's stag night. The group had visited a restaurant in Piccadilly before splitting up with some going to a Mayfair casino and four, including Mr MacDonald, visiting Stringfellow's.

"You have probably heard of the nightclub", said Mr Lovell-Pank. "It's a striptease and lapdancing club and it employs a number of girls and also a number of doormen or bouncers. One of the doormen was this defendant.

"Using the name Marcus Lee he has been an amateur boxer for a number of years and has taken part in competitive fights at cruiserweight and heavyweight level. He has also trained in martial arts and has worked as a doorman since 1995 and had been working at Stringfellow's since December 2002."

He explained that when Mr MacDonald had arrived he had had several drinks and broke the house rules by touching one of the girls.

Mr Lovell-Pank said: "At Stringfellow's the dancers do striptease, they do poledancing and they do lapdancing. You can have your own private show if you want to but there is an important house rule which is applied strictly - that is you are not allowed to touch the girls in any way.

"If you do you are likely to be ejected from the club."

During the evening a Polish lapdancer with the stagename Anna was giving Mr MacDonald a lapdance and he was seen touching her, the court heard.

"In the dance he pulled her towards him", said the prosecutor. "This was seen by one of the bouncers and he was asked to leave the club."

Mr MacDonald was being escorted from the club via the fire exit by two bouncers who were then joined by Marriott, the court heard.

Mr Lovell-Pank said: "Mr MacDonald was a bit drunk but he was able to walk up the stairs to the fire exit. He was making comments such as 'you think you are a big boy', speaking to this defendant. He kept turning round and swearing at this defendant."

The fire exit was opened and Mr MacDonald walked into the street, only to be followed by Marriott, the court heard.

Mr Lovell-Pank said: "In the next 30 seconds of this story this defendant had punched Mr MacDonald so hard in the face on the right hand side that it shattered the upper jawbone and sent his 21-stone body crashing to the pavement where he fractured his skull."

He died moments after hitting the street, the jury heard.

Mr Lovell-Pank said that the incident had been seen by a passing policeman and had also been caught on CCTV.

The case continues.