EXCLUSIVE Electrician who punched millionaire British banking boss to death in unprovoked attack will be released from prison today after spending just eight months behind bars – as victim’s family slam ‘unduly lenient sentence’

• Steven Allan knocked Paul Mason to the ground in sickening attack   
• 35-year-old admitted manslaughter and jailed for three-years and nine months
• Rachel Mason called for overhaul manslaughter sentencing guidelines

An electrician who punched a millionaire banking boss to death will be released from prison today in time for Christmas – after just eight months behind bars.

Steven Allan knocked Paul Mason to the ground during the sickening unprovoked attack and then fled on a rickshaw as the 52-year-old lay dying in the street.

Allan, 35, was jailed for three-years and nine months in April after admitting manslaughter but has been freed early on licence.

Mr Mason’s devastated family were given the news by probation officials and say they are horrified Allan will be out having not even served a year of his sentence.

His sister Rachel Mason told MailOnline: ‘As we approach our third Christmas without Paul, his killer will be released today from prison after serving just eight months of his three year and nine-month sentence for brutally killing Paul and running away as he lay dieing on the streets of the West End.

Steve Allan, 35, was jailed for three-years and nine months in April after admitting manslaughter but has been freed early on licence

Paul Mason hit his head on the pavement after being punched and despite doctors’ attempts to save his life by replacing part of his skull with a titanium sheet, he died six months later 

Mr Allan knocked Paul Mason to the ground during the sickening unprovoked attack and then fled on a rickshaw as the 52-year-old lay dying in the street

‘He is free to spend Christmas with his loved ones and we are left with a huge Paul shaped void again this Christmas.

‘Steven Allan killed Paul as he was drunk, apparently anxious and out of control.

‘Justice has not been served, over 60k people signed the petition to have the unduly lenient sentence reviewed and agreed it was clearly murder. This review though was denied by the Attorney General.

‘The judge stated in court he would receive a substantial sentence, he didn’t. The justice system failed us. It’s incredibly painful to know Paul’s killer will have spent such a short time in prison for such a violent attack on a wholly innocent man.’

Ms Mason called on the Government to overhaul the manslaughter sentencing guidelines so that another ‘miscarriage of justice like this cannot happen again’.

She added: ‘What hope do we have for a decent, kind, peaceful society in the UK if we don’t punish killers appropriately?’

READ MORE: Electrician ‘who accused millionaire British boss of Qatar National Bank of kidnapping his nephew and stealing friend’s phone before killing him with repeated punches outside The Ivy’

Mr Mason, the CEO for Qatar National Bank, had been enjoying Christmas festivities three years ago when his night ended in violence and tragedy.

He was with two friends at The Ivy Club, an exclusive private members’ club in Soho, on the evening of December 15, 2020.

As he emerged from the club, he helped a female friend into a black taxi before walking towards the junction where he was attacked.

Allan had been drinking in a number of bars when he bumped into Mr Mason and accused him of stealing a friend’s mobile phone.

He marched across the road and was captured on CCTV attempting to grab something from Mr Mason, who shrugged him off and stepped back

Allan followed him and punched with his right fist, knocking Mr Mason towards a building and onto the floor.

As he tried to get back on his feet Allan punched him a second time and then delivered an upper cut that caused him to fly back and land on his back with his head hitting the pavement.

Three off-duty nurses who had witnessed the attack tried to help Mr Mason, who had been knocked unconscious, and he was rushed to hospital where doctors carried out a procedure to replace part of his skull with a sheet of titanium.

Mr Mason’s sister, Rachel Mason, called on the Government to overhaul the manslaughter sentencing guidelines so that another ‘miscarriage of justice like this cannot happen again’

Mr Mason had been the chief executive officer at Qatar National Bank (pictured) at the time of his death

Mr Mason was killed after spending an evening at the Ivy club in the West End, a well-known haunt for actors and executives 

Despite their best efforts he fell into a coma and died six months later on June 4, 2021.

Allan, from Hook in Hampshire, fled the scene, but later handed himself in to police.

He admitted manslaughter but a jury at the Old Bailey deliberated for 24 hours to find him not guilty of murder in February following a retrial.

In her victim impact speech, Ms Mason revealed her oldest brother Simon, a recovering alcoholic, drank himself to death in September 2021.

He died just six days after his 56th birthday having binged on vodka to numb the pain of losing his brother.

Mr Mason’s family demanded a review of Allan’s sentence and set up an online petition, which more than 60,000 people signed.

But the Attorney General decided not to refer Allan’s sentence to the Unduly Lenient Sentence (ULS) scheme.

Labour’s Emily Thornberry, the shadow attorney general, expressed her ‘disappointment and disbelief’ at the decision and demanded Government action for bereaved families.

Solicitor General Michael Tomlinson, one of the Government’s law officers, acknowledged there were ‘strong feelings’ over the ‘unprovoked and violent attack’ on Mr Mason.

But he stressed the threshold for a sentencing review was not met in Allan’s case.

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