News

Milford Haven: Birthday girl ‘set fire to her own flat’, court hears

Published

10 years ago

January 19, 2015

A MILFORD HAVEN woman became out of control on drink and drugs during her birthday celebrations, leading to her ‘setting fire’ to her Mount Estate flat, Haverfordwest Magistrates’ Court heard on Tuesday (Jan 19).

Natasha Bradbury, 26, of Chestnut Way, appeared before Magistrates to face one charge of arson when reckless as to whether life could be endangered, one charge of breaching a conditional discharge, and one charge of being in possession of a class B drug.

Appearing behind the glass security screen flanked by two security officers, and wearing a loose fitting grey sweatshirt, Bradbury hid her face and sobbed as the charges were put to her.

Remanded for arson: Natasha Bradbury

Prosecutor Vaughan Pritchard-Jones explained to the court the events which led to the arrest: “At 5am police were called to the scene of a disturbance, which was outside the defendant’s home in the Mount Estate. Following a day of partying in Swansea, and drinking in the local pubs of Milford Haven she was reported to have been very drunk, and screaming and shouting and repeatedly kicking her door. Then, five minutes later a neighbour reported that he heard her shouting. She was heard shouting ‘I have set fire to my house and I don’t care about any of you c***s’. It is alleged that she put her hand through her own letter box and set fire to the curtain on the other side of the door.”

He added: “She should not get bail. I would say that anyone who gets themselves in such a state and not remember it could well do it again. Luckily the defendant’s boyfriend and another male who were at the scene were able to put the fire out before the fire brigade arrived.”

Defending, Mike Kelleher argued that Bradbury could be kept out of trouble if she was given her liberty and bailed to her mother’s address in Sageston. He said that his client suffered from anxiety and depression and regularly visited her doctor to obtain medication. He said that when she failed to answer bail on a previous occasion it was because she got mixed up and went to the police station instead of court.

Mr Kelleher said: “There may be people in the Mount Estate who wouldn’t take kindly to there being someone who started a fire living there. The houses are closely packed together. We are dealing with a minor fire, but all arson is serious. But she set fire to a curtain, and that was the extent of it.”

Chairman of the bench, Cllr David Simpson said: “You have listened to the charges, the bench has listened to what has been said here today. Unfortunately we do not feel we can grant you bail. You will be remanded in custody for arson when reckless as to whether life could be endangered.”

Bradbury will now appear at Swansea Crown Court on January 27. She was given a total of £170 in fines and costs for possession of cannabis and the breach of a conditional discharge.

News

Carmarthenshire takes leading role in latest Celtic Noir – ‘Out There’

Published

9 hours ago

January 13, 2025

Sarah Jane Absalom

Carmarthenshire looks set to take another leading role as the location for ITV’s highly anticipated gritty drama ‘Out There’,

Produced by Buffalo Pictures and starring Martin Clunes, the programme will be aired on January 19.

The news means that Carmarthenshire is fast gaining recognition as a hub for the Celtic Noir genre of filming, and the new six-part thriller joins the many TV and film productions which have been drawn by the county’s dramatic, beguiling landscapes and attractive market towns.

It follows on from the highly acclaimed BBC’s Keeping Faith as well as The Light in the Hall/ Y Golau for Channel 4.

‘Out There’ will showcase Carmarthenshire’s natural beauty against the malice of an insidious crime wave sweeping the British countryside, led by county lines drug dealers and urban gangs that use the countryside as their field of operations. Martin Clunes stars as farmer and single parent, Nathan Williams, who runs a farm which has been in his family for generations.

Many of the filing locations can now be visited by following Discover Carmarthenshire’s new ‘Set Jetter Trail’ which provides insider tips on how best to follow the sometimes eerie paths that many stars have taken around the county.

Crime

Father of baby girl killed in Tenby incident says its been like a ‘horror movie’

Published

10 hours ago

January 13, 2025

Staff Writer

A SIX-MONTH-OLD baby girl has tragically died after her pram was struck by a car in a multi-storey car park in Tenby, Pembrokeshire.

Sophia Kelemen, described as “smiley and bubbly,” suffered catastrophic brain injuries in the collision on Thursday (Jan 2). Despite being airlifted to a Cardiff hospital, the injuries proved fatal.

Sophia’s family, from Greater Manchester, had been on holiday in Wales and were preparing to head home when the incident occurred.

Her father, Alex Kelemen, 27, told the BBC: “Just before we got to the car, the horror movie started.

“It’s been horrific to see our little daughter lying in that hospital bed and going through all those procedures. Everybody loved her—our friends, our family. She’s always going to live in my heart. I know she’s watching over me every day.”

Sophia’s parents now face the heartbreaking task of explaining the tragedy to their five-year-old son, Lucas.

“He’s been asking about his little sister every day,” said Mr Kelemen. “The hardest thing I’ve ever done is explain to him that God loved his sister more than we did. I told him that God gave Sophia a new pair of wings so she could fly above him and protect him.

“There are things I just don’t know how to explain to him. He’s our only child now, and everything we do is for him.”

Family’s heartbreak

Sophia’s aunt, Adriana Kelemen, recounted the devastating events to the Manchester Evening News.

“They were on a short break in Wales with family friends,” she said. “It was their last day. They’d been out, and then they went to the supermarket.

“It happened in the car park. The pram Sophia was in was destroyed.”

Support for devastated family

Fundraising efforts are now underway to support Sophia’s family. Two GoFundMe pages—one in English and one in Romanian—have been launched to cover funeral costs and repatriation expenses. The family plans to bury Sophia in Romania.

Meanwhile, Flaviu Naghi, 33, from Wigan, has been charged with causing death by dangerous driving, as well as driving without a licence or insurance. He is due to appear at Swansea Crown Court on February 7.

Donations to assist the family can be made via the GoFundMe pages.

Pictured:

Tragic loss: Six-month-old Sophia Kelemen, pictured with dad Alex, died after her pram was hit by a car (Pic: Dyfed-Powys Police)

News

Wales at the forefront of UK drive to ‘turbocharge’ AI

Published

10 hours ago

January 13, 2025

Tom Sinclair

THE FIRST MINISTER OF WALES Eluned Morgan has welcomed today’s announcement from the UK Government of a multi-billion pound investment in Artificial Intelligence.

The UK Opportunities Action Plan, launched by Prime Minister Keir Starmer today, aims to drive economic growth, support public services and use intelligent technology to improve people’s every day lives.

Wales is uniquely placed to benefit from the AI infrastructure plans, with work already underway to develop tech hubs, shared resources and data centres.

As part of the investment announced today, US technology giant Vantage Data Centers plans to invest over £12 billion across the UK, resulting in the creation of over 11,500 jobs. The Welsh Government has been working closely with Vantage since 2020 to support the development of its data centres in Wales.

It is expected that the lion’s share of the new investment from Vantage will be in Wales. The biggest investment will be in Bridgend, where the company plans to develop the former Ford factory site to become one of Europe’s largest data centre campuses.

The First Minister is keen to ensure Wales benefits from the investment in AI, saying:

“Today’s announcement, which includes a multi-billion pound investment in AI by some of the world’s biggest tech companies, is a huge boost in confidence for industry in Wales.

“We are seeing that AI is increasingly being used as a power for good, whether that’s increasing productivity or bringing smarter solutions to everyday problems.

“There can be enormous benefits to the economy in establishing the tech and wider infrastructure here in Wales. Industry leaders recognise that the conditions are right in Wales, with a government that will do what it can to make these plans a reality.

“This won’t happen overnight and it’s important that the infrastructure, data, skills and talent is in place to ensure that we all benefit from these solutions. There’s no question that Wales is in an excellent position to benefit, given the work that’s already in progress here.”

The Economy Secretary Rebecca Evans is leading a review to explore how Wales can capitalise on opportunities and develop Wales’ strengths in the development of AI-based technologies.

Over the past year, the Welsh Government has worked with other organisations to develop guidance to support Welsh public bodies in adopting AI in a responsible, safe and ethical way.

Wales has already seen evidence of the value of AI implementation in diagnostic care in the NHS, with a digital pathology platform for prostate and breast cancer detection led by Betsi Cadwaladr seeing a 13% increase in prostate cancer detection rates.

Estyn, the school inspectorate, is also undertaking a review of the use of Generative AI in schools, which will explore the potential benefits to schools, while also considering the challenges they pose.