### Grieving Family Pleads for Justice After UK Father Dies Following Benidorm Assault
What should have been an unforgettable ‘holiday of a lifetime’ amongst friends ended in heartbreak for the family of Mike Rydings, who died in 2019 after a shocking attack during a trip to Benidorm. The incident – which left the Manchester-born father in a vegetative state – remains unresolved, with his attacker never found despite international appeals for information.
Rydings, who was 47 at the time, had travelled to the bustling Spanish resort with a group of 30 friends. Their trip coincided with the 2018 World Cup, providing the perfect occasion to celebrate both football and personal milestones, including a 50th birthday among the party. Spirits were reportedly high as the group enjoyed an evening at the Hippodrome Bar on the Avenue de Mallorca – an area known for its vibrant nightlife.
Tragically, the atmosphere soured in the early hours of 23 June, when Mike became separated from his friends. It was during this brief absence that he suffered a violent assault perpetrated by a yet-to-be identified individual from a group of five or six men. Witnesses later reported seeing Mike, a builder by trade and a Manchester United supporter, being punched in the nose, causing him to fall heavily and sustain significant head injuries. The force of the attack left him unconscious on the pavement, changing the lives of his loved ones forever.
Mike’s family soon received the harrowing news of his hospitalisation. His daughter, Hayley, who was pregnant at the time, and his sister, Nicola, immediately flew out to Spain to be by his side. For a month, they kept vigil as Mike remained unresponsive, his condition critical and reliant on life-support machinery.
The ordeal continued when Mike was transferred to Salford Royal Hospital in the UK. Despite the hopes of family and friends, his condition failed to improve, and he remained unable to speak or move. He required round-the-clock medical care for over a year, before he passed away in August 2019, aged just 48. The impact of his death, compounded by the absence of justice, has left his family in a state of ongoing grief and anguish.
Spanish authorities spearheaded the initial investigation, reaching out to potential witnesses and reviewing available evidence. Descriptions of the primary assailant indicated a white man in his 20s or 30s, of a larger build, wearing camouflage clothing on the night. Despite these efforts, no suspect was ever confidently identified and no arrests were made. Back in the UK, Greater Manchester Police conducted their own inquiries, interviewing British holidaymakers who had been on the scene, but similarly came up against a wall of silence and inconclusive leads.
Hayley Rydings, now 36, has spoken openly about the immense pain and frustration caused by the lack of answers. Marking what would have been her father’s 54th birthday, she expressed the family’s unresolved grief: “You can’t ever really move on, because you don’t have any answers. It’s been years and we haven’t been told anything.” She recounted the traumatic moment she found her father in hospital, her distress at his suffering, and the added sadness that he never got to meet her children.
The family continues to appeal to the public for information, desperate for any new leads. Mike was last seen wearing a red Hugo Boss t-shirt and was outside the Hippodrome Bar when the fateful confrontation occurred. Authorities urge anyone who was in Benidorm in the summer of 2018 and may have seen something, however minor, to come forward. Their hope remains that a breakthrough could finally provide the closure they so desperately seek.
This tragic incident underlines the perils that can befall British tourists abroad, as well as the complexities of cross-border investigations. Despite high-profile appeals and concerted investigative efforts both in Spain and the UK, some cases, such as Mike Rydings’, are yet to witness justice for victims and their families.
The story remains a painful reminder of the long-lasting impact of unresolved crime and the importance of ongoing collaboration between international police forces. For the Rydings family, justice and closure remain elusive, but they continue their campaign, determined that no one else should suffer in silence.