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Ffos Las founder Dai Walters celebrates win on home turf

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Ffos Las racecourse founder Dai Walters returned home to victory on Sunday when his six-year-old novice Lump Sum won the DragonBet Welsh Champion Hurdle.

Ridden by Dylan Johnson, Lump Sum was made the 11/10 favourite for his handicap debut and surged clear after jumping the last.

He’s trained by Sam Thomas.

Walters, who is pictured above (centre) with sponsor James Lovell and Ffos Las’s general manager Kevin Hire, is one of Wales’ most well-known businessmen, and regularly appears on annual lists of the richest business owners in the country for his wide-ranging business interests in construction as well as his love of horse racing.

His fortune is entirely self-made having started out as an apprentice labourer at an opencast site in south Wales in the 1970s. The Walters Group website describes how, after working as a labourer, greengrocer and tree planter, he took a job as an apprentice fitter at the Wimpey operated Maesgwyn opencast coal mine at the age of 20. There, he worked his way up through the ranks to Ganger (section) Fitter, ending up as a Foreman Fitter for the site and within five years, he was plant manager at the Trecatti Opencast site near Merthyr where he was responsible for managing over 300 items of plant across three opencast coal sites in the South Wales Coalfield.

In 1982 Walters, whose Christian name is Gweirydd, struck out on his own to buy his first bit of machinery, namely a Caterpillar 950 working for British Coal at the Onllwyn Washery and a Caterpillar D4, working on the Hirwaun Industrial Estate constructing an extension to the GEC Hitachi factory.

Since then, the Walters Group has added earthmoving and civil engineering services to its portfolio, and was soon involved in major construction projects throughout Wales. 

But Walters is perhaps best known for his love of horse racing after two of his former Irish employees persuaded him to buy a share in a horse. As his passion for racing grew, in 2009 he turned his attention to transforming the former opencast mining site in Carmarthenshire into the Ffos Las Racecourse, which became the UK’s first purpose-built horse racing venue since 1928. In 2018 he sold Ffos Las to Arena Racing Company (ARC), saying that they would be able to attract more reliable fixtures by moving them around their network of racecourses.

Crime

Man charged with strangulation and assault offences after October incident

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A MAN recorded in court as having no fixed abode has appeared before magistrates charged with intentional strangulation and two further assault offences.

Michael Sudbury, 50, whose address was not read out in court, but in Herald records is Glan Hafan, Llangwm, appeared before the bench facing multiple charges.

The charges relate to an incident on 22 October 2025 and include:

  • Intentional strangulation, contrary to section 75A of the Serious Crime Act 2015
  • Common assault
  • Assault by beating

No further details of the alleged incident were opened in court, and no plea was entered at this stage.

Sudbury was remanded on conditional bail, with the case listed to return to magistrates later this month.

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Crime

Haverfordwest man sent to Crown Court on multiple serious charges

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Defendant remanded in custody

A HAVERFORDWEST man has been sent to Swansea Crown Court to stand trial on a series of A 49-year-old Haverfordwest resident has been committed to Swansea Crown Court to face trial on multiple serious charges deemed too grave for magistrates to handle.

David Guy, of Market Street, Haverfordwest, appeared before Haverfordwest magistrates facing a series of allegations stemming from a single case. The charges, which were not detailed in open court, include:

  • Assault occasioning actual bodily harm (ABH)
  • A second count of assault
  • Criminal damage
  • An additional allegation of interpersonal violence
  • A public order offence

Magistrates declined jurisdiction, determining that the matters exceeded their sentencing powers, and sent the case in its entirety to Swansea Crown Court.

Guy was remanded in custody pending his next appearance. The court register notes: “Sent to Crown Court for trial in custody – next hearing at Swansea Crown Court.”

A date for the initial Crown Court hearing will be set administratively. Guy will remain in custody until then.

The Pembrokeshire Herald will provide further updates as the case progresses in the Crown Court.

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Crime

Castlemartin man back before magistrates over multiple alleged assaults

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Defendant remanded on conditional bail ahead of further hearing

A CASTLEMARTIN man has appeared repeatedly before magistrates this month over a string A 40-year-old man from Castlemartin has made repeated appearances before magistrates this month in connection with a series of serious alleged offences, including assault occasioning actual bodily harm (ABH), intentional non-fatal strangulation, common assault, and criminal damage.

Anthony Alcock, of Pwll Street, Castlemartin, is facing six linked charges stemming from incidents said to have occurred earlier this year. These appear to relate to the same complainant in what is understood to be a single ongoing domestic abuse prosecution.

During recent administrative hearings at Haverfordwest Magistrates’ Court, Alcock did not enter pleas while matters of bail and case management were addressed.

Charges Include:

  • Assault occasioning actual bodily harm (ABH)
  • Intentional non-fatal strangulation
  • Common assault on a woman
  • Criminal damage in a domestic context
  • Additional assault allegations involving the same complainant
  • Breach of bail conditions

Alcock was initially granted conditional bail but was subsequently brought before the court on two occasions for alleged breaches. On those instances, magistrates remanded him in custody ahead of further hearings. He was later re-granted conditional bail, subject to strict conditions such as no contact with the complainant and exclusion from specified locations.

Magistrates have now declined jurisdiction, ruling that the case—particularly the more serious charges involving non-fatal strangulation—is too grave for summary trial. It has been committed to Swansea Crown Court for plea, trial, or sentencing.

No detailed evidence has been presented in open court at this preliminary stage. Alcock remains on conditional bail pending his next appearance at the Crown Court.

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