Crime

Pembrokeshire window fitter denies raping woman in her own kitchen

Published

12 months ago

May 12, 2025

A MOTHER has told a court how she was raped in her own kitchen after her children were ordered upstairs by the defendant.

“I kept pushing him away, saying I didn’t want to,” the woman told Judge Paul Thomas KC, sitting at Swansea Crown Court on Monday, May 12.

“I didn’t want to make a fuss because of my children.

“I was still saying ‘No’, but then he pushed me down on the floor.”

Richard Murray, 46, of Hill Street, Haverfordwest, denies orally raping the woman at her home in Narberth on August 25, 2022. He also denies sexually assaulting her and causing her to engage in a sexual activity without her consent.

The woman, who cannot be named for legal reasons, told the court that she’d met Murray earlier that afternoon at the Costcutter store, Narberth, after walking there with her young children, to buy a pair of scissors. She explained that she wanted to cut posters out of her children’s comics, but was unable to find scissors at her property.

“I saw Ritchie [Richard Murray] and he asked me what we were doing there,” said the woman in a police video interview that was played to the court.

“He told me not to worry, but he’d come over and sort it out.”

She said that she’d known Murray, who at the time of the offence was employed as a window fitter, for several months leading up to the alleged incident.

When Murray and the victim returned to her home, the victim claims that Murray took out a Stanley knife and began cutting out the posters for her children.

“But then he became a bit more suggestive,” she said.

“He asked me if I wanted to have an affair and I said no. I just wanted him to stop. He’s asked me this before. I’ve always said no, and it’s always stopped at this point.

“But then he began pulling me closer to him and he shouted at the children to go upstairs to hide, and then it happened. He shut the kitchen door and started putting my hands on him, in that area in front of his trousers.

“I was pushing him away but then he got [his penis] out and pushed me down on the floor and put it in my mouth. I kept pushing him away, saying nothing, and then I pushed hard and fell back against the tumble drier.

“I was terrified the children were going to know, as I didn’t want them to witness or have to deal with any of this.”

The victim said that following the alleged incident, Murray left her property.

She went on to accuse Murray of touching her breast at a previous incident at her home earlier that summer.

But Prosecution counsel, Mr Dyfed Thomas, KC, claimed the victim had encouraged Murray’s advances in the weeks leading up to the alleged incident, despite knowing that he was married.

“You never told him he wasn’t welcome at your house, did you?” he said. “You didn’t have to let him in. You could have blocked him on your phone and you could have said ‘You’re not welcome any more. Come around here again, and I’m contacting the police.

“Or you could have said that you were going to phone his wife and tell her that he was around at your home all the time. But you didn’t do any of this, did you?”

The victim replied that her intention was ‘to avoid the situation’.

Richard Murray is expected to begin giving his evidence tomorrow (Tuesday).

Crime

Farming company fined £19,000 for damaging protected wildlife site

Published

4 hours ago

May 5, 2026

Sarah-Jane Absalom

A CARDIGAN farming company has been ordered to pay almost £20,000 after recklessly damaging a Site of Special Scientific Interest.

Jenkins Ty Hen Ltd, run by David Glyn Jenkins and William Lloyd Jenkins, of Ty Hen, Verwig, admitted damaging the Llwyn Ysgaw, Caeau Crug Bychan and Ty Gwyn SSSI through the unauthorised use of manure, slurry, fertilisers and lime.

The offences took place between June 21 and July 31, 2024.

The court heard that Natural Resources Wales had repeatedly warned the company about how the protected land should be managed.

Aled Watkins, prosecuting for NRW, said an agreement made in 2004 made clear that the landowners needed written consent before carrying out certain activities on the site, including the use of slurry, herbicides, pesticides, fertiliser or lime.

He said: “A significant amount of guidance, advice and warnings has been directed to the company over a substantial period of time, as there have been problems before.”

The court was told advice had been given in 2017, with further discussions in 2021. Further problems were identified in 2024, leading to advice letters and then a formal warning in June that year.

Mr Watkins said: “Even after the letters were sent, no consent request was made.

“The common sense conclusion was that, where the original agreement was clear and advice had been given years prior, this was a deliberate act by the landowners of spreading slurry on the SSSI.”

Jenkins Ty Hen Ltd pleaded guilty to intentionally or recklessly destroying or damaging flora on the protected site, contrary to the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981.

The company also admitted permitting the use of manure, slurry, silage liquor, fertiliser or lime without written consent from NRW, knowing it was likely to damage rare flora and fauna as well as geological and physiographical features.

Defending, solicitor Harry Dickens said the company had not deliberately set out to damage the land.

“This is more akin to the business damaging the land rather than setting out within their practices to do that damage,” he said.

He added that various contractors were used at the farm and were not always aware of the regulations.

“The defendants did not go out intentionally to harm the flora and fauna,” he said.

“Yes, they had foresight of the warnings and the previous agreement, but this is more akin to wilful blindness rather than going out intending to damage the land. It was not a flagrant disregard.

“The defendants were not loutish in their usage of the land, they are not vandals, they have not been silent and neither have they stonewalled NRW.”

Mr Dickens said the farmers accepted the need to restore the land and were keen to work productively with the authorities.

District Judge Mark Layton said Jenkins Ty Hen Ltd had breached NRW requirements.

“They spread fertilisers, herbicides and slurry on the land which was a breach,” he said.

“This was clearly a deliberate act of culpability and a complete disregard after already being given advice and warnings.”

The court heard the company’s most recent financial turnover was just over £1.6m. It was described by the defence as a micro-business.

Jenkins Ty Hen Ltd was ordered to pay £19,940.66, made up of a £9,000 fine, £8,940.66 costs to NRW and a £2,000 surcharge.

A restoration order was also made requiring work to improve the quality of the damaged SSSI land.

Crime

Trial of men accused of murdering Ian Watkins delayed

Published

7 hours ago

May 5, 2026

Tom Sinclair

THE TRIAL of two prison inmates accused of murdering former Lostprophets singer Ian Watkins has been delayed by a day.

Watkins, who was serving a 29-year sentence for child sexual offences, died following an alleged attack at HMP Wakefield last October.

Rashid Gedel, 25, who has been referred to in court as Rico Gedel, and Samuel Dodsworth, 43, were due to stand trial at Leeds Crown Court on Tuesday (May 5).

The case is now expected to begin on Wednesday (May 6).

Watkins was jailed in December 2013 for 29 years, with a further six years on licence, after admitting a series of child sex offences, including the attempted rape of a baby.

He was arrested after police executed a drugs warrant at his home in Pontypridd on September 21, 2012. Officers seized computers, mobile phones and storage devices, which later revealed evidence of his offending.

Watkins had previously been taken to hospital after being attacked in prison in 2023.

In 2019, he was jailed for an additional ten months after being found guilty of possessing a mobile phone while in prison.

Crime

70-year-old denies assault and restraining order breach

Published

4 days ago

May 1, 2026

Rieve Nesbitt-Marr

A PENSIONER from Pembroke Dock has denied breaching a restraining order and assaulting another man.

Henry Howlett, 70, of Market Street, appeared before Swansea Crown Court today (Friday, May 1), charged with breaching a restraining order and common assault.

The charges relate to an alleged incident on November 9 last year.

Howlett has previously appeared before magistrates in connection with a separate alleged incident involving a neighbour.

Haverfordwest Magistrates’ Court previously heard that a dispute arose on July 17 after neighbour Steven Bromhall was washing his car outside his home in Market Street.

Prosecutor Nia James told the court that, as a taxi arrived to collect Howlett, the driver opened the window while passing and Mr Bromhall inadvertently sprayed the taxi driver with water from a hosepipe.

“The taxi driver started remonstrating, and the defendant then began waving his walking stick in the air, towards Mr Bromhall,” she said.

The court heard Mr Bromhall sustained an injury to his back, although it remained unclear whether he had been struck by Howlett’s stick.

Howlett pleaded not guilty to common assault in relation to that incident and was released on unconditional bail. A trial date was set at Haverfordwest Magistrates’ Court.

At Swansea Crown Court today, His Honour Judge P H Thomas KC asked Howlett whether he was legally represented.

“I can’t find anyone decent, I’m still searching, my lord,” Howlett replied.

When the court attempted to take his pleas, Howlett repeatedly interrupted in an effort to give an explanation, prompting the judge to tell him: “Be quiet, Mr Howlett.”

Howlett then pleaded not guilty to the charges, telling the court: “Definitely not guilty.”

As he left the courtroom, Howlett said: “I will get the truth out and I hope you all hang your heads in shame… this is all fixed.”

A trial date was set for January 14, 2027.