Two people convicted of manslaughter after man dies from a stab wound at Bourne park
It happened in June 2024
Last updated 7th Mar 2025
A man and a teenager have been convicted of manslaughter after a man died from a stab wound at a busy park in Bourne.
It happened in June last year.
The court heard Reece Bruns, of St Paul’s Gardens, Bourne used a machete to strike Kyle Marshall when the pair confronted each other at Wellhead Park - after a number of disagreements.
The 21-year-old told jurors he'd lashed out in self defence. But jurors decided he had intended to cause Kyle some degree of harm. They cleared him of murder, but convicted him of manslaughter.
Bruns had been passed the weapon by a 17-year-old who can't be named for legal reasons. The youth was also found guilty of manslaughter.
A phone belonging to the youth defendant was seized as part of enquiries carried out by officers and this revealed videos and pictures that helped build a timeline of events.
A four-week trial into the case began in February before concluding today, Friday, 7 March.
Both Bruns and the youth had been charged with murder and possession of a bladed article in a public place.
Burns had denied the charges before being found guilty of manslaughter and the second offence.
The youth who handed Bruns the weapon was also convicted of manslaughter, as well as the possession of a blade article in a public place offence.
The pair have been remanded into custody and will now be sentenced at a later hearing on 16 May.
Detective Chief Inspector Jennifer Lovatt paid tribute to those who contributed to the investigation and thanked the community for their patience and cooperation throughout.
She said:
“It was a huge investigation which saw us speak to a significant number of witnesses.
“It was one of the hottest days of the year and as a result there were a lot of people around when it happened.
“We spoke to around 100 people – which we needed to do as there was no CCTV that captured the actual incident.
“It was a horrific and traumatic incident which a number of people witnessed, including Kyle’s family who we’d like to extend our deepest condolences to.
“I would also really like to thank the community for their understanding throughout the initial stages of the investigation as I appreciate it will have caused disruption.
“As part of this investigation we found videos and images of young people glamourising knives and weapons on mobile phones.
“There is no reason to carry a knife and when you make the choice to take a weapon into a public place you are putting lives at risk.
“I would implore any young person to make the right choice – say no to knives and weapons, put the safety of yourselves and those around you first.
“If anyone reading this is in a situation where they feel they need to carry a knife please speak to a responsible adult about it, whether that’s your parents, teacher, a trusted adult or the police.
“They can help to resolve the situation as the consequences of carrying a knife as seen in this investigation could result in someone being seriously or fatally injured or a prison sentence.”