News
Court hears about ‘mysterious appointment’ with doctor in murder trial
A MURDER trial jury heard today (Jan 29) about a mysterious appointment with a doctor Betty Guy had just two days before she died.
Her daughter Penny John, who is accused of helping to kill her, told Swansea Crown Court that on November 4, 2011, she took her to see Dr Roger Burns.
John said she was inside the consultation room when she heard Dr Burns say to her mother, “Sorry, we have been giving you the wrong medicine for years. You don’t have long left.”
Paul Lewis QC, prosecuting, said, “He was prophetic. Two days later she was dead.”
John said her mother, aged 84, became upset and began to cry before saying she wanted to leave.
Questioned by Mr Lewis, John agreed there was no mention of the consultation “whatsoever” in her mother’s medical records.
Mr Lewis said the only explanation was that John had made it up, or that Dr Burns had neglected to make a note of it, or had made a note but later deleted it.
John agreed she had not asked Dr Burns for how long her mother had been given the wrong medicine or how it could have happened. Nor did she ask what the new medicine would be.
She said that after the consultation she drove her mother to a Tesco because she knew she was short of food, and then her mother said she wanted to be left alone for the weekend.
Forty eight hours later she received a telephone call from Mary Collier, a friend of her mother’s, telling her she was very ill and that she should drive to her home in Hillcroft, Johnston.
John said she arrived and made her mother some tea.
She found her dying in bed at about 1 am.
John telephoned her son, Barry Rogers, and told him his grandmother was seriously ill and was asking for him.
Rogers drove to the bungalow but claims she was already dead.
Mr Lewis asked John why, if her mother was that ill, she had telephoned her son but not a doctor or for an ambulance.
“I asked her four or five times. She did not want me to make that call. She said she did not want to be fiddled about with. She just wanted to be left alone.”
Mr Lewis asked, “Did you think she was close to death? Had you decided her end was nigh and you were going to speed it up?”
“No,” replied John.
Rogers, of High Street, Fishguard, and John, 50, of Maes Dre, Union Terrace, St Dogmaels, deny murdering Mrs Guy in the early hours of November 7, 2011.
At first her death was put down to natural causes and her body was cremated at Narberth four days later.
The prosecution claim John fed her a cocktail of drugs and whiskey and that Rogers “finished her off” by placing a pillow over her face.
The trial continues.
Crime
Recycling company brought before Judge after JCB crushes employee
A PEMBROKESHIRE-BASED recycling company has been brought before a district judge after an employee was seriously injured by a JCB loading shovel.
TBS Recycling and Skip Hire appeared before Judge Mark Layton at Haverfordwest magistrates court earlier this week when company director, Steven Thomas, pleaded guilty to failing to discharge general health, safety and welfare duties to an employee.
The incident occurred on March 31, 2021, at the TBS recycling and skip hire unit which is situated at the Waterston Industrial Estate, between Neyland and Milford Haven.
“An employee of the company was working on the site when he spotted something caught in the wheel of a four-ton JCB,” commented a lawyer for the Health and Safety Executive.
“He went to clear it and the person who was in the [JCB] driving seat knew he was doing it. But he was distracted and believed the other employee had left. So he lowered the shovel, but it crushed him.”
As a result, the employee sustained crushed ribs and damage to his lungs and breathing.
“But he’s since made a good recovery,” said the Health and Safety Executive lawyer.
Steven Thomas, of Cross Farm, Walwyns Castle Road, Ties Cross, will be sentenced by Judge Layton when he sits at Llanelli Magistrates Court on June 6.
Crime
Pembrokeshire car salesman caught driving on cocaine
A PEMBROKESHIRE car salesman has appeared before a District Judge after being caught driving a cream BMW through Kilgetty after taking cocaine.
Fraser Finlay was stopped by police officers on the night of October 3, 2023, as he drove the vehicle along Clayford Road in Wooden.
The officers’ suspicions had been aroused when the trade insurance which covered his vehicle failed to show up on their system.
A roadside breath test was carried out which proved positive and Finlay, 25, was conveyed to a police custody suite where further blood tests were carried out for analysis.
These showed he had 20ug/L of cocaine in his system; the legal threshold limit is 10. He was also found to have 800 ug/L of the cocaine derivative benzoylecgonine in his system; the legal limit is 50.
“This conviction means that my client is most likely to see an end to his job,” his solicitor, David Williams, informed District Judge Mark Layton sitting at Haverfordwest magistrates court earlier this week.
“This is because he works as a car salesman.”
Finlay was disqualified from driving for 17 months. He was fined £450 and ordered to pay a £180 court surcharge and £85 costs.
News
Pembrokeshire hostel manager narrowly avoids jail sentence
A FORMER Pembrokeshire homeless hostel manager narrowly avoided a jail sentence this week after a District Judge was shown footage of her kicking a defenceless man as he lay drunk on the floor.
Linda Tysoe, 52, was seen walking over to Shaun Nelmes and kick him repeatedly. She was also seen hurling a can of tomatoes at his head.
As a result, Mr Nelmes sustained extensive lacerations to his face; images of his injuries were shown to the judge.
“The defendant admits the seriousness of her actions and she can see that they look aggressive,” probation officer Charmain Fox told District Judge Mark Layton when he sat at Haverfordwest Magistrates Court earlier this week.
“But over the last seven years, there have been many incidents of a domestic nature where the defendant was the victim. That night, she saw red and her actions were completely out of character.”
The assault took place on the night of October 1 when Mr Nelmes arrived at Linda Tysoe’s home. CCTV video footage shown to the court that was retrieved from her mobile phone showed that he was heavily intoxicated.
“He was extremely intoxicated, so she asked him to leave,” continued Ms Fox.
“When he left, he then tried to gain entry into the homeless hostel which the defendant was managing. She received calls from residents saying that he was outside, so again she tried to remove him but she saw red. She wanted to make clear that his behaviour was completely out of order.”
Ms Fox said that as a result of the attack, Tysoe has now lost her job.
“She is currently living in a caravan outside the family home,” she said.
Tysoe pleaded guilty to a charge of assault causing actual bodily harm. She was legally represented in court by solicitor Mr Michael Kelleher.
“My client has no previous convictions but she was the victim in previous matters involving the complainant [Shaun Nelmes],” he said.
“At the time this offence was committed, he was on a prison licence for assaulting her.”
Tysoe was sentenced to 16 weeks in custody, suspended for 12 months. She was ordered to complete 15 rehabilitation requirement days and must pay £85 court costs and a £154 surcharge.
“On October 1 last year your relationship came to an end and clearly something happened that night which caused this vicious and violent incident,” said District Judge Mark Layton when imposing sentence.
“You kicked him on the floor and threw a can at him which is believed to have been a full can of tomatoes that caused significant injury to his face. This crosses the custody threshold.”
-
Business1 day ago
Bluestone National Park Resort payments expected to end
-
Community3 days ago
The Harbourmaster: Special rail excursion draws crowds to Milford Haven
-
News2 days ago
Dragon LNG ‘monitoring’ scrap car blaze in Waterston
-
News3 days ago
Search for Luke, 19, reported missing in the Pembroke Dock area, continuing
-
News4 days ago
Major search in the area of The Cleddau Bridge and Hobbs Point
-
Crime1 day ago
Estate agents admit health and safety failings following fatal market incident
-
News5 hours ago
Search for missing teenager Luke continues at Pembroke Dock
-
News10 hours ago
Man jailed after scarring police officer in Narberth altercation