A CARMARTHEN tattoo artist has said she stopped a tattoo session and asked a customer to leave after he allegedly disclosed his previous conviction for child sex offences.

Ffion Emma, who works from Mythical Ink in Queen Street, Carmarthen, posted online that the man had appeared to be “a normal human being” before opening up about his past during the appointment.

She said he told her he had been in prison and admitted he had been found with indecent images of children.

The tattoo artist said she immediately stopped the session and told him to leave the studio.

Convicted in 2019

The man was named online as Gavin Evans, formerly of Glanamman.

Court reports from 2019 show Evans, then a Tesco worker, was jailed after grooming a vulnerable young girl online and admitting child sex offences.

He appeared at Swansea Crown Court on March 29, 2019, where he was sentenced for offences including making indecent images of children.

The case involved a vulnerable young teenager who had been groomed online.

Studio stance

In her post, Ffion said Evans was “not welcome” at the studio and made clear that anyone convicted of similar offences would not be accepted as a customer.

The post attracted a large reaction online, with many people praising her decision to end the appointment.

Some comments went further, calling for violent or humiliating treatment of sex offenders, but The Herald is not repeating those remarks.

Businesses are generally entitled to refuse service, provided the refusal is not based on a protected characteristic under equality law.

PASSENGERS in Wales and the West of England are seeing fewer train cancellations and slightly better punctuality following action by the rail regulator.

The Office of Rail and Road has formally closed enforcement action against Network Rail after monitoring a long-term performance improvement plan for its Wales and Western region.

The plan followed an investigation in 2024, which found that Network Rail’s infrastructure and working practices were contributing to poor train performance across the region.

Since August 2024, Network Rail says cancellations have fallen by more than a fifth, while the proportion of trains arriving within three minutes of their scheduled time has improved from 77.6% to 79.4%.

The improvements followed work on track, overhead line equipment, axle counters and points in the Thames Valley area, as well as flood resilience work at Chipping Sodbury.

Network Rail has also introduced welfare officers at key Thames Valley stations to help prevent trespass and has made changes to train control, timetable planning, incident learning and the management of stranded trains.

Graham Richards, Director of Planning and Performance at the Office of Rail and Road, said: “Following concerted efforts from Network Rail, and continued engagement by our teams at ORR, I am pleased to see that passengers in Wales and Western are experiencing better, more reliable train services.

“Nevertheless, we know that for many passengers train performance is not what they would expect – so we are continuing to work with train operators and Network Rail across the country on how to further improve performance.”

Mark Killick, Network Rail’s Managing Director for Wales and Western Region, said: “Customers are seeing a more reliable railway, reflecting the extensive improvements we’ve delivered over the last two years.

“We know delays and cancellations still impact journeys, so while this progress is a positive step, we continue to work closely with our industry partners to deliver an ever more reliable railway for our customers.”

PEMBROKESHIRE workers are among the higher earners in Wales, according to new research analysing full-time weekly pay across the country.

The study by CV Maker, using Office for National Statistics data from April 2025, placed Pembrokeshire eighth out of Wales’ 22 local authority areas for median gross weekly earnings.

Full-time workers in Pembrokeshire earn an average of £711.30 per week, putting the county slightly above the Welsh average of £704.

The figure also places Pembrokeshire ahead of Swansea, Ceredigion, Carmarthenshire, Powys and Gwynedd.

By comparison, Monmouthshire was named the highest-paid area in Wales, with full-time workers earning an average of £773.50 per week. Merthyr Tydfil recorded the lowest figure, at £619.20 per week.

That means the gap between the highest and lowest-paid areas in Wales is £154.30 per week, equivalent to more than £8,000 a year.

Pembrokeshire’s average weekly earnings are £7.30 above the Welsh average, but £62.20 below Monmouthshire.

The figures also show a marked difference between Pembrokeshire and neighbouring Carmarthenshire, where full-time workers earn an average of £657.70 per week. That puts Pembrokeshire workers £53.60 per week better off on average, or around £2,787 a year.

Ceredigion sits closer to Pembrokeshire, with average weekly earnings of £675.70 — £35.60 lower than Pembrokeshire.

The research ranked the ten highest-paid areas in Wales as Monmouthshire, Newport, Flintshire, Cardiff, Bridgend, Wrexham, Neath Port Talbot, Pembrokeshire, Swansea and the Isle of Anglesey.

Nicky Klaasse, CEO at CV Maker, said: “These figures highlight the significant wage disparities across different regions in Wales.

“While the national average weekly earnings sit at £704, there’s a notable £154 gap between the highest and lowest-paying areas.

“For job seekers in Wales, this data provides valuable insights into where the highest earning potential might be found.”

The company said the figures were based on ONS median gross weekly earnings for full-time employees, ranked by local authority.