A MAN is due in court charged with the manslaughter of Irishman Desmond O’Beirne, who died six months after a shocking assault in London.
Meanwhile a second man has been detained in the US in connection with the incident.
Mr O’Beirne, 51, who was described as a 'gentle giant', was assaulted in Trafalgar Square in June 2017 while enjoying night out.
He was rushed to hospital but never regained consciousness, passing away six months later.
Luis Abella, 22, of Marshall Court, SW4, was charged with manslaughter on August 15.
He will appear on bail at Westminster Magistrates’ Court on Wednesday, September 5.
A second man, aged 25, has been detained by US authorities in connection with the incident and will be extradited to Britain in due course.
'Larger than life'
Mr O’Beirne was from Westminster but the Metropolitan Police confirmed he was of Irish descent.
He was attacked outside the National Gallery in Trafalgar Square by two men at around 12.25am on Saturday, June 3, 2017.
London Ambulance Service attended and treated him at the scene before taking him to hospital, however he died from his injuries five days before Christmas.
A post-mortem examination held on January 3 gave his cause of death as a head injury.
CCTV footage of the assault released as part of the investigation showed a female bystander holding her hands to her face in shock during the incident.
Mr O’Beirne’s sister, Vivienne Folan, previously paid tribute to him, saying: “My brother Desmond was hard working and larger than life.”
