Teenage boy Cian English plunges to his death from a fourth-floor Surfers Paradise balcony while trying to escape violent eshay thugs

The parents of a young man who died from a fourth-floor balcony while trying to flee from three men who tortured him have expressed their heartbreak over their son’s life being stolen from him.

Lachlan Paul Soper-Lagas, 21, Jason Ryan Knowles, 25, and Hayden Paul Kratzmann, 23, each pleaded guilty to the manslaughter of Cian John English.

The Crown accepted each admission of guilt and dropped the original murder charge when the case was heard before the Brisbane High Court on Thursday.

Mr English, 19, died after falling from the fourth floor of the View Pacific resort in Surfers Paradise on May 23, 2020.

English was only 19 years old. His grieving family says: ‘We’ll never see him get married, never see his kids who could have been anything’

He had checked into the holiday apartment with a group of friends, ready to party for the weekend, the court was told.

Kratzmann, Knowles, and Soper-Lagas had also checked into the same hotel and were staying in an apartment on the fourth floor, directly above Mr. English’s apartment.

The court was told that the two groups of friends started chatting while each on their respective balconies.

During their conversation, Kratzmann invited Mr. English and his friend to the fourth-floor apartment, where he offered them a number of prescription and non-prescription drugs.

Crown Prosecutor Caroline Marco said the two groups of friends were “amicable” and continued to party together in the fourth-floor apartment.

She said “that changed between 1:44am and 2:50am” when Kratzmann began accusing Mr English and his friend of stealing the drugs.

The court heard that while the drugs were missing, “an associate of Kratzmann’s” stole the drugs without his knowledge.

Ms Marco said the three men began threatening and assaulting Mr English and his friend over the next 27 minutes, with the violence against the couple ‘escalating’ as time went on.

The court was told that both Mr English and his friend had been physically and mentally abused by the three men at different times, with both men ‘inflicting pain and suffering’.

Mr. English was pushed face down on the couch at one point and Kratzmann punched him in the back.

They were also threatened with knives, with Mr English’s friend even being hit on the head with the butt of a knife at one point.

Ms Marco said Mr English then ran to the balcony in an attempt to flee the men in the apartment after realizing it was unlikely he would make it safely through the front door.

She said it was “very likely that he tried to climb to the floor where his unit was located and fell.”

“They all threatened and intimidated Mr English (and his friend) and encouraged the others,” Ms Marco said.

Mr English fell from the fourth floor balcony of The View Pacific Resort in Surfers Paradise

“This forced him to try to escape by climbing over the balcony and falling to his death.”

The court was told that the three men had failed to help Mr English, and instead packed their bags and left the apartment 16 minutes after he fell.

Ms. Marco said Kratzmann had called triple-0 at 3:14 a.m. and told the operator that he had been on his bike and seen someone on the ground outside the apartment, but had lied about his name and phone number.

Mr. English was pronounced dead by paramedics at 3:53 am.

His family told the court how the young man’s death deeply affected them.

His father, Vincent English, told how the loss of his son with the ‘cheeky smile’ continues to haunt him every day.

“No one should ever do this, there are no words to explain what we went through for the rest of our lives,” said Vincent English.

“They have taken our son, taken away his future, and darkened the future of those who loved and worshiped him.

“We’ll never see him get married, we’ll never see his kids who could have been anything.

“He was so gifted at the sport and full of life, no matter what he tried, he wasn’t afraid of a challenge.

“He was a magnet, he drew people to him, he was incredibly knows what was happening and helped people.”

The 19-year-old’s mother, Siobhan English, said she is still dealing with the painful loss of her son.

“The excruciating pain and terrifying nightmares of seeing my beautiful boy broken and covered in bandages is an image that will never leave my mind,” she said.

“A whole generation is forever changed.”

The court heard about the grief the English family felt, with many of those still living in Ireland unable to attend the 19-year-old’s funeral due to Covid restrictions.

His uncle, Trevor Webster, said his family’s grief over missing the funeral will never end.

“Cian’s passing has left a huge void in the family that will never be replaced,” said Mr Webster.

“His grandparents visit his grave three times a day, so he’s not alone.”

Mr English’s friend, who was also attacked that night, told the court how he continues to suffer every day since the loss of his ‘best friend’.

He spoke of the “sleepless nights” he still goes through and the impact of the physical and mental abuse he endured continues to have an impact on his daily life.

The three men also pleaded guilty each to two counts of armed robbery in company, two counts of torture and one count of robbery.

The court was told that the trio stole another man’s shoes, belt, wallet, purse and Apple AirPods.

Mr. Kratzmann also pleaded guilty to a separate criminal offence, namely entering a premises with intent to commit a criminal offence.

Ms. Marco argued that Kratzmann and Knowles should be sentenced to 11 years in prison, while Soper-Lagas should receive nine years in prison.

The three men will be sentenced on Friday.