Pub Owner Kills Customer With Ironing Board

July 3, 2015 – It could only happen in the U.K.  Rostam Notarki, owner of the Cardinal Wolsey pub close to Hampton Court palace, followed his customer, Charles Hickox, an American, down the street and hit him with an ironing board knocking him into the path of an oncoming van.  Hickox suffered head injuries and died.  Notarki said he was defending himself from Hickox attacking him with a tennis racquet.

The eccentric Mr. Hickox, who looked like a bum but was actually very wealthy, was known to carry with him blue plastic bags containing two tennis racquets and two ornamental mice.  He would place the mice on the bar and talk to them.  A dispute arose over three bottles of wine Hickox ordered in the pub last September.  The story goes that Notarki switched the wines to a cheaper vintage.  An altercation ensued and Notarki chucked Hickox out of the pub.

When Hickox realized his Visa card was missing, he returned to The Cardinal Wolsey, two tennis racquets in hand and demanded its return.  At some point he shaved or hit Notarki with a tennis racquet and ran off.  Notarki followed him and socked him with the ironing board.

The whole bizarre episode resulted in one dead customer and one publican found guilty of manslaughter by an Old Bailey jury.

The ornamental mice had no comment.