A soldier based at a North Yorkshire garrison has died after being attacked outside a club as he celebrated his homecoming from Afghanistan.

David Grout, 22, had been enjoying a low-key homecoming celebration with his parents and looking forward to a reunion with his wife and child when two men confronted him outside the Eston Institute Club in Teesside last Tuesday.

A 19-year-old from the Eston area of Middlesbrough, who handed himself in to Cleveland Police, was arrested in connection with the incident and has been released on bail.

A Cleveland Police spokesman said the soldier, who served with the 204 Signals Regiment and was based at Catterick Garrison, died shortly before lunchtime on Tuesday. He had been in a critical condition at the James Cook University Hospital in Middlesbrough.

Witnesses saw Signalman Grout confronted by two men outside the working men’s club, police said.

After a brief conversation, one threw a punch at the soldier, who fell to the ground and suffered serious head injuries.

The soldier was taken to hospital where he was put into an induced coma to stabilise his condition. His family, including his wife and 20-month-old son, remained by his bedside.

The teenager who was arrested contacted police after an appeal for witnesses to the attack.