Man Inadvertently Kills Friend for 'Poking' His Girlfriend on Facebook

Richard Rovetto

Courtesy of Richard Rovetto

By Alex Heigl

@alex_heigl

10/07/2014 AT 06:15 PM EDT

A U.K. man has been jailed for four years after an argument with a friend in the back of a cab escalated into a fistfight and a death. The cause? A "poke" on Facebook.

The U.K. Mirror reports that Nottingham man Scott Humphrey, 27, got into a verbal altercation with his friend, Richard Rovetto, 29, in a cab on the way home from a bachelor party. The cab driver told the court that he heard Humphrey angrily ask Rovetto, "If you're such a good friend then why did you poke my missus?"

According to the cab driver's testimony, Humprey repeatedly punched Rovetto in the cab, and the argument came to a head when the cab stopped in Top Valley, Nottingham. The pair exited the vehicle and Humphrey punched Rovetto, who fell to the pavement and hit his head.

Rovetto, a father of one, was rushed to the hospital, where he died hours later. Humphrey fled the scene, but later turned himself over to the police. He admitted to manslaughter and received a sentence of four years and four months.

Humphrey's defense attorney, Robert Egbuna, said, "The defendant is genuinely remorseful about his actions. He will never forget that day. As soon as Scott Humphrey heard about what had happened to Richard Rovetto, he was devastated. He has been very candid and admitted this offense from the very start."

Rovetto's brother-in-law, Jason Burley-Evans, 42, said, "This was a waste of a life. We feel the sentence wasn't the justice we wanted for Richard. He was a much-loved person and it will be hard for us all to move on."