A 15-year-old boy has been charged with the manslaughter of Polish man Arkadiusz Jozwik, the Crown Prosecution Service has said.
Initial reports suggested the death of the 40-year-old, who was attacked in Harlow, Essex, was being treated as a possible hate crime, but it is understood that prosecutors are not treating it as such.
Mr Jozwik was attacked outside a row of takeaway shops on August 27 and died in hospital two days later.
Five teenagers who were initially arrested in connection with Mr Jozwik’s death were told they would face no further action by Essex Police.
The decision not to charge the five boys, who prosecutors said were at the scene, was taken in October due to a lack of evidence.
Mr Jozwik was attacked in a shopping precinct called The Stow at around 11.35pm. He was initially taken to the Princess Alexandra Hospital in Harlow but was later transferred to the specialist head injury hospital Addenbrooke’s, in Cambridge, where he died.
Paul Scothern, Crown Advocate in the Complex Casework Unit for the Crown Prosecution Service East of England, warned people against posting any information online that could prejudice the case against the 15-year-old.
“It is very important that there should be no reporting, commentary, or sharing of information online which could in any way prejudice these proceedings,” he said. “For these reasons, it would be inappropriate for me to comment further.”
The 15-year-old, who cannot be named for legal reasons, is due to appear at Chelmsford Youth Court on January 6 2017.