Mother’s Court Tribute as Michael Barron Is Found Guilty of Strangulation and GBH

michael barron, a 38-year-old actor who had appeared on Hollyoaks and Emmerdale, died after an encounter arranged on Grindr that a court was told became an 'extreme' sexual session. The case has moved to sentencing after a jury convicted the man who invited him to his flat of intentional strangulation or suffocation and unlawfully inflicting grievous bodily harm.

Michael Barron: Mother's Testimony at Minshull Street Crown Court

During the sentencing hearing on Monday at Manchester’s Minshull Street Crown Court, michael barron’s mother, Mary Power, gave a tearful, emotional tribute. She described her son as "my best friend", "kind, compassionate and very unique" and said he "brightened up my world as soon as he entered it". Power told the court, "A part of me died. Nothing can prepare you for the loss of a child. A part of me died, a part of me I will never get back. "

Her remarks came immediately before the judge addressed arguments from the defence that the encounter had been consensual; the judge rejected those arguments ahead of sentencing.

Grindr Messages and the Meeting on 26 January

The court was told that on 26 January last year the two men connected on the dating app Grindr. Their exchange moved from an initial plan for a hookup to explicit discussion of rough and more extreme sexual activity, including bondage and role play. michael barron had written that he preferred to be "tied, gagged, hooded, totally helpless" and that he enjoyed "pain and torture". The other man responded that he wanted to "get you so drunk you pass out", and mentioned having cable ties and rope.

They also discussed "rape role play", and court evidence said the visitor instructed Mr Barron: "As soon as you get here, start drinking vodka. Get you so drunk. "

Baxter of Lakeside Rise, Blackley: Actions and Trial Verdicts

Baxter, aged 28 and from Lakeside Rise in Blackley, north Manchester, invited Mr Barron, 38, to his flat for drinks and sex. At trial he denied manslaughter and fought charges of intentional strangulation or suffocation and unlawfully inflicting grievous bodily harm. The jury acquitted Baxter of manslaughter but found him guilty of intentional strangulation or suffocation and unlawfully inflicting grievous bodily harm.

During his defence at trial, Baxter told jurors he "never saw it as a dangerous activity" and insisted "I have never hurt someone before, doing choking. " He also claimed the neck injury to Mr Barron was accidental; the jury’s verdicts rejected that claim.

Forensic Findings: Neck Injury, Suffocation and Cause of Death

Judicial findings presented at sentencing say Baxter bound Mr Barron to his bed with rope and suffocated him for at least 30 minutes. The violent session left a broken bone in Mr Barron’s neck and medical evidence established he died from a cardiac arrest caused by oxygen deprivation to the brain.

The court was told both men were part of a community interested in kinky sex or BDSM, but the judge refused the argument that that shared interest made the actions consensual in law.

Family Reaction, Outstanding Detail and the Record

Mary Power’s courtroom tribute underlined the personal impact: she repeatedly stressed how close she and her son were and how he had become her companion and best friend. The sentencing hearing followed the jury’s verdicts from a trial last month, and the matter will proceed to the judge for formal sentencing.

Greater Manchester Police is named in the material associated with the case. One line in the provided material is incomplete and reads: "Following his grandmother's passing, the pa"—unclear in the provided context.

What makes this notable is the combination of detailed pre-meeting messages, the sustained nature of the assault determined by the court—at least 30 minutes of suffocation—and the jury’s split verdicts, which ruled out manslaughter but upheld criminal liability for intentional strangulation or suffocation and unlawfully inflicting grievous bodily harm. The timing matters because the convictions follow a full trial and set the stage for sentencing after the family’s public tribute.