‘We can’t believe our friend, Sam, is no longer here’
GRIEF AS DAD-OF-ONE FOUND DEAD IN WOODLAND AREA
SHOCKED friends of a man whose body was found in a wooded area near Skelmanthorpe have spoken of their disbelief at his death.
The body of Sam Leslie Wilcock, 33, was discovered by police just off Pilling Lane, at 7am yesterday, after they received a report of a concern for safety.
Mr Wilcock, a big Tottenham Hotspur fan, who was well-known in the village, was married to Rosie and had a little son, Archie, who he doted on.
Neil Hutton, landlord of The Grove pub, in Skelmanthorpe, said: “I had known him all the time I have been here, around three years.
“He was a friend and used to play pool for the pub team.
“He was a down-toearth lad who worked at the pub as a barman for the previous landlord and I still can’t believe it. He loved his son and his wife, Rosie.
“He knew everybody round here and was wellliked. No-one can believe it.
“He was one of those people who would help anyone, nothing was too much trouble for him. For example, he jetwashed the decking here.” As well as working at The Grove, prior to Neil’s arrival, Mr Wilcock had also worked at The Parish pub, in Huddersfield town centre.
Neil added: “More recently, he had been working for a friend of his making headboards in Barnsley.”
One of Mr Wilcock’s closest friends wrote a moving tribute on Facebook and said: “This week, I lost one of my oldest and closest friends to a terrible illness.
“We spoke about it regularly in depth, but he just couldn’t escape the dark cloud hanging over him.
“I’m completely heartbroken and will miss you more and more each day.
“I’m so sorry you’re gone. There was always an open ear and a shoulder to cry on, but sometimes that isn’t enough.
“Depression is an epidemic taking over our generation. There needs to be so much more research put into it to help find treatments that work.
“But, please remember, it’s ‘OK not to be OK!’”
West Yorkshire Police said there were no suspicious circumstances and the file has been passed to the coroner.