PEMBROKE DOCK teenager handed curfew and rehabilitation order after court hears of repeated police call-outs

An 18-year-old Pembrokeshire woman has been released on conditional bail after admitting possession of a knife at a Milford Haven retail park.

Jaylane Bamford was arrested shortly after midnight on Sunday (Nov 24) at Haven Head Retail Park, where officers found her with a cut to her hand and a blade in her possession.

Prosecutor Ryan Colamazza told Haverfordwest magistrates this week that police had been dealing with repeated incidents involving the defendant in recent months.

“The police go out, they find her drunk in the street with the same group of friends, they speak with her and she becomes abusive,” he said. “The police are having difficulty dealing with her.”

Mr Colamazza added that on two previous occasions Bamford had been found with injuries to her hand. The most recent incident also placed her in breach of existing bail conditions, which prohibited her from contacting a female who was with her at the time of the arrest.

However, her solicitor Tom Lloyd said the offence must be seen in the context of significant personal difficulties.

“This isn’t simply a young lady running wild in the community and misbehaving,” he said. “This is a young lady with a vast array of problems and difficulties.

“She was in possession of the knife for the sole purpose of causing self-harm, so she’s a threat and a danger only to herself.

“Spending four weeks in custody has been a huge thing for her. She’s found it very difficult and she never wants to go back.”

Appearing via video link from HMP Parc, Jaylane Bamford, of Britannia Drive, Pembroke Dock, pleaded guilty to possessing a blade in a public place and to breaching her bail conditions.

She was sentenced to an 18-month Community Order, including a three-month electronically monitored curfew between 7:00pm and 7:00am, and 18 days of rehabilitation activity requirements. A destruction order was made for the knife.

Magistrates also ordered her to pay a £114 court surcharge and £85 in costs.

Police appeal for witnesses after incident reported in early hours of Sunday

DYFED-POWYS POLICE are investigating an allegation of rape reported to have taken place at Sands Nightclub in Saundersfoot in the early hours of Sunday (Dec 14).

The alleged incident is reported to have occurred in the toilet area of the nightclub shortly after 3:00am.

An 18-year-old man has been arrested in connection with the allegation and remains in police custody while enquiries continue.

Officers are appealing to anyone who was in the venue at the time, or who may have seen or heard anything that could assist the investigation, to come forward.

Anyone with information is asked to contact Dyfed-Powys Police online, by calling 101. Alternatively, information can be passed anonymously to Crimestoppers by calling 0800 555 111 or via their website.

Quote reference: 25*1018987.

Accused tells jury claims did not happen as trial hears evidence about alcohol use and alleged controlling behaviour

A MAN accused of sexually abusing a child in Pembrokeshire more than fifteen years ago has denied the allegations while giving evidence at Swansea Crown Court.

Thomas Kirk, aged 50, of Meyler Crescent, Milford Haven, is accused of orally raping and sexually assaulting a child aged between 13 and 15-years-old in the Pembrokeshire area between 2007 and 2008.

The jury has heard allegations that Kirk forced the child to perform oral sex, compelled her to remove her clothing and digitally penetrated her, leaving her distressed and in tears.

Kirk, who is originally from Scotland, gave evidence in his own defence and denied carrying out any of the acts alleged.

When the accusations were put to him directly, he told the court: “No, it did not happen.”

Alcohol use disputed

The court heard that Kirk, who has recently been employed as a grounds worker, has struggled with alcoholism for much of his life and accepted that there were periods when he could not remember what he had done the previous night.

Counsel for the prosecution, Robin Rouch, suggested that Kirk had been drinking heavily around the time of the alleged offences and that alcohol may have been a contributing factor.

Kirk denied this, telling the jury he had stopped drinking around 2007 and did not consume alcohol at home.

“I would have the occasional drink at work Christmas events, but I would never have alcohol at home,” he said.

“That is a lie, isn’t it, Mr Kirk?” Mr Rouch put to him.

“No,” Kirk replied.

The prosecution suggested that witnesses would say Kirk regularly drank vodka mixed with energy drinks and kept bottles of vodka at his home during the relevant period.

“It’s true, Mr Kirk, that you had a bottle of vodka in the house and were drinking vodka from a glass, wasn’t you?” the court heard.

“No, I wasn’t,” Kirk responded.

Allegations of controlling behaviour

The jury also heard allegations that Kirk became controlling towards the child after learning she had lost her virginity.

It was suggested he frequently checked her phone messages and attempted to control what she wore and who she spoke to.

“I was protective, not controlling,” Kirk told the court.

When asked whether he could think of any reason why the alleged victim would fabricate such serious allegations, Kirk said he could not.

Background to the case

Kirk first appeared before Haverfordwest Magistrates’ Court in connection with the allegations in 2023.

At that hearing, he was charged with one count of rape and a further count of sexual assault involving a girl who was aged between thirteen and fifteen at the time of the alleged offences.

The court was told the offences were alleged to have taken place between May 2007 and May 2009 at an undisclosed address in the Pembrokeshire area.

Because both offences are indictable-only, magistrates sent the case to Swansea Crown Court for trial. No pleas were entered at that stage and Kirk was released on unconditional bail.

Later at Crown Court he pleaded not guilty leading to the trial this week.

On Tuesday, His Honour Paul Thomas KC, told the jury that legal summing up will take place on Tuesday (Dec 17), after which jurors are expected to retire to consider their verdict.

The case continues.