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Crime

Council chief’s son spared jail after drug-fuelled A40 crash

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Judge says driver showed “breathtaking arrogance” after taking cocaine, cannabis and diazepam

A SENIOR council officer’s son came close to immediate imprisonment after driving dangerously for several miles while under the influence of three drugs before crashing into two vehicles on the A40, a court has heard.

Benedict Bramble, aged 24, of Saundersfoot, was sentenced at Swansea Crown Court after admitting dangerous driving and three counts of drug driving following the incident near Haverfordwest on Thursday, May 15.

The court heard that Bramble was driving an Audi A3 when members of the public contacted police to report his erratic behaviour on the road.

Prosecutor Dean Pulling said one witness described the driving as “completely erratic and utterly dangerous,” with the defendant seen swerving across the carriageway, crossing solid white lines and overtaking other motorists.

At one point, Bramble was observed changing his clothes while driving in slow-moving and queuing traffic.

Dashcam footage shown to the court captured the defendant narrowly avoiding a head-on collision with a tractor while attempting an overtaking manoeuvre, having to sharply pull back into his lane.

The incident came to an end at around 3.40pm after a seven-mile stretch of dangerous driving, when Bramble collided with two vehicles, both of which were written off.

The court was told that tensions were high at the scene, with one motorist so angry at Bramble’s actions that they assaulted him following the crash.

Blood tests later revealed Bramble had 240 micrograms of cocaine, 2.8 micrograms of delta-9 tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) and 1,155 micrograms of diazepam in his system at the time of the collision. He was five times over the legal limit for a cocaine derivative.

The case was initially heard at Haverfordwest Magistrates’ Court on Tuesday, November 25, where Crown Prosecutor Nia James told the court that two vehicles had been written off as a result of the crash.

“The Crown puts this at the starting point of 18 months in custody,” she said.

Due to the seriousness of the offences, District Judge Mark Layton declined jurisdiction and committed the case to Swansea Crown Court for sentence. Bramble was given an interim driving disqualification and released on unconditional bail.

During that earlier hearing, Bramble was accompanied by his father, Will Bramble CBE, a retired army major general and the chief executive of Pembrokeshire County Council.

At sentencing, the court also heard that Bramble had a previous conviction for driving without due care and attention in New Hedges, near Tenby, committed just three days before the A40 incident.

Defending, Mark Haslam said his client had strong family support and had shown genuine remorse.

He told the court: “There are extremely powerful character references which speak very highly of this defendant and his potential.

“He has stopped taking drugs and understands the seriousness of what he has done.

“If he goes to prison today, he will lose his job and probably lose his relationship.”

Passing sentence, Judge Huw Rees told Bramble: “You displayed breathtaking arrogance in driving in this way.

“You took hideous risks.

“You could have killed somebody that day — you could have killed yourself.”

Bramble was sentenced to 12 months in prison, suspended for 18 months. He was also ordered to pay £582 in fines, costs and surcharge, and was banned from driving for two years and ordered to take an extended retest.

Commenting on how narrowly he avoided being jailed straight away, Judge Rees added: “You have come as close as close can be to serving this sentence immediately.”

 

Crime

Historic Vagrancy Act repealed as rough sleeping is decriminalised

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A 200-year-old law which criminalised rough sleeping and begging has been repealed in England and Wales.

The Vagrancy Act 1824, long criticised by homelessness charities as outdated and inhumane, was formally repealed today, Monday, June 29.

The change means people can no longer be criminalised simply for sleeping rough or begging, although existing laws remain in place to deal with criminal behaviour or anti-social behaviour where necessary.

Welsh homelessness charity The Wallich welcomed the repeal, describing it as a major step away from punishment and towards support.

Sian Aldridge, Interim Chief Executive at The Wallich, said: “If you are forced to sleep on the streets, you are not a ‘vagrant’, you’re a human being who needs support and love.

“Experiencing homelessness is extremely traumatic and the 200-year-old Vagrancy Act was altogether cruel, inhumane and actively prevented people from breaking repeated cycles of homelessness. It’s been a long fight get it repealed.”

The charity said it had campaigned for years alongside Crisis, Liberty, Shelter Cymru, St Mungo’s, Centrepoint, Cymorth Cymru and Homeless Link for the law to be scrapped.

Ms Aldridge added: “The final repeal of the Vagrancy Act shows that when we speak out together, change is possible. Change that could be transformative to tackling homelessness in Wales.

“We only hope now that policing and local authorities in Wales do not use other means to unnecessarily penalise people for sleeping rough.”

The Wallich said it remained concerned about the use of dispersal orders, public space protection orders and “hostile architecture”, such as anti-sleep benches or doorway spikes, where these are used to move people on rather than address the causes of homelessness.

The repeal comes after years of pressure from charities and campaigners, who argued that criminalising rough sleeping pushed vulnerable people further away from help.

The UK Government said the move marked a shift from punishment to prevention, with ministers saying homelessness should be treated as a social issue requiring support rather than prosecution.

 

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Crime

Carmarthen man admits takeaway burglaries

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Phillip Roberts stole cash from USA Chicken and returned the following day with intent to steal

A CARMARTHEN man has admitted a string of burglaries at the same takeaway business on consecutive days.

Phillip Roberts, 44, of Brewery Road, Carmarthen, appeared before Llanelli Magistrates’ Court after pleading guilty to three offences connected to USA Chicken on Blue Street.

The court heard that on June 4, Roberts entered the premises as a trespasser and stole a tip jar containing cash. He also admitted a second burglary at the same business on the same date, during which £50 cash was stolen.

A further offence took place on June 5, when Roberts entered USA Chicken as a trespasser with intent to steal.

Magistrates adjourned sentence for the preparation of a pre-sentence report. The report will consider all sentencing options, including possible committal to the Crown Court.

Roberts was granted conditional bail. He must not enter USA Chicken, Blue Street, and must not contact Mustafa Baksi, either directly or indirectly.

He is due to return to Llanelli Magistrates’ Court on July 1 for sentence.

 

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Crime

Six arrested after immigration raids at Florentino’s restaurants

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SIX people have been arrested following Immigration Enforcement raids at Florentino’s Italian restaurants in Tenby and Carmarthen.

Officers visited the Tenby branch in St Julian’s Street on June 18, where two Romanian nationals were identified as allegedly having no right to work in the UK. Both were arrested on suspicion of illegal working.

The Tenby operation followed an earlier raid at Florentino’s in Carmarthen in February, where four workers — two Romanian nationals, a Bangladeshi national and a Mongolian national — were also arrested on suspicion of illegal working.

Florentino’s in Tenby

The Herald previously reported in March that the Carmarthen restaurant had been linked to a major HMRC case, after Claudio Cernat Ltd, formerly trading as Florentino’s on Jacksons Lane, was listed over a £278,000 deliberate tax underpayment and a further £186,000 penalty.

Immigration officials say inquiries are now under way to establish who may be liable for employing the individuals. Employers found to have breached illegal working rules can face civil penalties of up to £60,000 per worker.

One of the Tenby workers has already returned, while the other is in the process of returning. Of the Carmarthen workers, two have returned, one was placed on immigration bail and another was de-arrested with a warning.

Immigration Enforcement Lead for Wales, Richard Johnson, said: “I want to thank my officers who showed the highest levels of professionalism under challenging circumstances on these operations.

“Immigration Enforcement teams in Wales continue to work round the clock to ensure businesses play by the rules and those with no right to be in the UK are tracked down and returned at the earliest opportunity.”

The Home Office says illegal working enforcement has increased significantly since July 2024, with raids and arrests rising across the UK and Wales.

No finding has yet been made against the restaurant operators in relation to the latest arrests.

Florentino’s has been approached for comment.

 

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