NTU student who fractured victim’s skull with a single punch shows remorse for his actions

A Nottingham Trent University student who punched a first-year after being deliberately tripped is showing remorse after realising how much the assault has impacted the victim’s life. 

In the early hours of 1st November 2023, the morning after Halloween, 21-year-old Aryan Ramnani Martinez, an NTU student, punched a first-year and fractured their skull whilst crossing Milton Street. Both individuals had been partying earlier that night as part of Halloween celebrations. 

After the altercation, Martinez, 21, quickly fled the scene, leaving behind a woman who remained to assist the injured party.

She placed him in the recovery position and later received a message from Martinez urging her “not to snitch”, reported Nottinghamshire Live. 

The repercussions of the punch were severe, with the injured party spending nine days in the hospital and undergoing a two-month recovery period due to their fractured skull. In a victim impact statement read to the court by prosecutor Dominic Shelley, the complainant expressed the impact of the incident: 

“I had just started at university and moved to the city, and I missed so much, including seminars, lectures, exams, and assessments. I planned to work to support myself during my studies, but I was not able to and spent two months stuck in my flat, unable to make friends and socialise.” 

Upon his arrest, Martinez was shown CCTV footage of the punch, at which point he “became emotional,” according to Mr. Shelley. He further recounted the events leading up to the assault, explaining that just before it occurred, the injured party had stuck out a leg to trip Martinez as they crossed the road in opposite directions.

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This act, seemingly done “for no reason,” prompted the defendant to confront the individual and deliver a punch to the face. 

In court, Mr. Shelley elaborated on the aftermath of the punch: “His head made contact with the ground and caused a fracture just behind the right ear.”

After striking the victim, the defendant ran off, while the woman with him stayed at the scene to help. “She got the victim off the road, onto the pavement, and into the recovery position,” Mr. Shelley added. 

Martinez avoided a prison sentence, potentially aided by the clemency of his victim. In a statement read by Mr. Shelley, the victim expressed that he “does not want this defendant to go to prison for what he did.” 

Luc Chignell, in mitigation, noted that his client had no prior legal issues and was in the city to pursue a degree from his home country of Spain. He also mentioned a letter from Martinez in which he apologised to the victim, stating: “I really wish I could go back in time and change what I did. I was stupid, and I really know how much this has changed [the victim’s] life.” 

Consequently, the judge sentenced Martinez to an eight-month jail term that was suspended for a year, with orders to pay £300 in compensation to the injured party.

Despite Martinez being given a suspended sentence, Recorder Penelope Stanistreet-Keene emphasised the severity of the incident, saying: “People can die in these circumstances, and the courts regularly see cases like this where they do. You left him in the road; he then spent nine days in hospital with a fractured skull.”