UMVA has learned that Billy Allison, a 36‑year‑old from Solihull, has been charged with the murder of Matt O’Gara in a brutal incident at the Ricco and Loren bar in Lichfield.
Allison, a known activist in the Raise the Colours and Operation Stop The Boats movement, was brought before Judge Avik Mukherjee for a brief eight‑minute hearing, where he only confirmed his name under the clerk’s questioning.
The judge, with a stern tone, informed Allison that he would be due back in court in September for a plea and trial preparation hearing, and that he would remain in custody until then.
“Billy Allison, will you stand please,” the judge ordered, marking the gravity of the case and the expectation that the defendant attend every day of the upcoming trial.
After the hearing, Allison was escorted back to his cell, the weight of the charges pressing heavily on the quiet streets of Lichfield.
Matt O’Gara, a director of The Plough pub in Huddlesford, succumbed to fatal injuries in the same wine bar, a tragedy that has left his family in profound grief.
His mother, overwhelmed, declared that her son’s sudden loss would never be forgotten, while his niece remembered him as “the best person” and a lifelong best friend.
The court has set a two‑week trial for October 26, a date that will bring the community together in pursuit of justice for O’Gara’s family.
