Enemy pay tribute to stab victim
COVENTRY band The Enemy have led tributes to a man who was stabbed to death at a petrol station.
Tributes have flooded in for the popular tattoo artist Mark Nesmith, from Coventry, who worked at Hales Street Tattoo in the city centre, after he died in hospital on Monday.
Mark, 35, had suffered serious injuries in an incident at the BP garage in Butts Road, Spon End, in the early hours of Sunday.
Former colleagues have paid tribute to Mark saying he “was family to us all” and have echoed the sentiments from one of the members of The Enemy.
A statement on the band’s Facebook page reads: “Today I learned that Mark Nesmith, a friend and an inspiration has passed away.
“I first met Mark when I was 16. Watching Mark sing in Akeal with the confidence he had was the inspiration I needed to begin singing.
“He was humble, hilarious and had a huge heart. He’ll be missed not only by his close friends and loved ones, but by all the people who were quietly influenced by him.
“Mark’s bravery, kindness and talent will be remembered every night on this tour. Without his example I might never have had the confidence to sing a note.”
A tribute from his former colleagues at the Grizzly Tattoo Collective in Coventry, said: “We cannot express the deep sadness we have over the death of Mark Nesmith – not only was he an employee and colleague of the Grizzly Art Collective studio, he was family to us all.
“We had the pleasure of knowing Nessy since the day he came and asked for a tattoo apprenticeship. He is a very talented, unique artist.
“After qualifying as an illustrator at Coventry University his passion was to tattoo and he became our apprentice for a couple of years. He then ventured out on his own and had landed himself a position as a tattoo artist at Hales Street Tattoo in the centre of Coventry.
“He was a well-known man in the tattoo convention scene and would talk to anyone as if he had known them for years. “He will be missed greatly by all of us at Grizzly Art Collective and his good friends at Hales Street –Warren Perry and Paddy O’Rafferty.
“It was an honour to work with this talented man over the years he worked at our studio. He will always hold a big place in our hearts. “He without doubt kept our studio in high spirits with his humour and witty jokes. “We would like to take this opportunity to thank clients that left messages sharing their personal tattoo experiences with Nessy and the support from people all over Coventry and beyond.
“Our heartfelt love goes out to his family and his girlfriend.”
Two people have been arrested in connection with the incident at the BP garage at around 1.50am on Sunday, including a 21-year-old man from the city on suspicion of attempted murder. He remains in custody.
A 23-year-old woman who was detained on suspicion of assisting an offender has been released on bail.
He was humble, hilarious and had a huge heart. Statement on The Enemy’s Facebook page