Birmingham City fan, 32, who punched Jack Grealish is found dead

A father-of-three football fan who was jailed for running onto a pitch and punching England star Jack Grealish has been found dead.

Birmingham City fan Paul Mitchell attacked Grealish at St Andrew's Stadium when he was playing for Aston Villa before being dragged off the pitch in March 2019.

The 32-year-old, who was jailed for 14 weeks but let out after serving four, was discovered at a property in Birmingham earlier this week, reported The Sun.

Mr Mitchell's cousin Lucy Mitchell told the newspaper: 'Paul absolutely adored his three children. He always had a smile on his face no matter what.

'He had the kindest heart. He is sadly going to be missed by a lot of people. He was a very popular man. It won't be the same without him here anymore.'

She also said that other people saw him on Saturday when he seemed his 'happy normal self'. His mother Debbie Drew told the Sun: 'Our family loved him so much.'

And his friend Ash Herbert wrote on Facebook: 'Absolutely gutted mate. We had some mad childhood memories I will cherish for the rest of my life. Rest easy, one of my best old friends mate... till we meet again.'

Mr Mitchell was sent to prison again in September last year for 12 weeks for breaching a ten-year football ban when he attended Birmingham's game against West Bromwich Albion and ran onto the running track to celebrate a goal.

When Mr Mitchell was jailed at Birmingham Magistrates' Court soon after the Grealish attack in 2019, it was revealed that his pregnant wife and two-year-old child had fled their home over 'death threats' made against him.

Mr Mitchell, who had been a season ticket holder at Birmingham and a fan for 20 years, carried out the assault 'as a joke' because he thought the footballer 'was a kn*b', the court was told at the time.

The court also heard from Mr Mitchell's defence lawyer that he had 'brought shame upon his family and the club he has supported as a child' and the attack was 'totally out of character'.

Friends also revealed Mitchell, who until recently ran a working men's club, had received 'death threats' for his actions including that his home would be attacked.

A statement at the time from Grealish, who scored the winner in a 1-0 victory for Villa despite the attack, said he was 'shocked and scared' at how Mitchell had been able to launch his attack and feared it 'could have been worse' if he was armed.

And a statement at the time from Birmingham City said that the club 'welcomed' the sentence, adding: 'What he did was unacceptable and has no place in football.'