A PEMBROKESHIRE gardener has been found not guilty of exposing his ‘flaccid penis’ to a female property owner after agreeing to cut trees in her garden.

The complainant, who cannot be named for legal reasons, claimed Thomas Jones, 21, exposed himself to her after agreeing on a £300 fee for cutting down trees in her back garden.

As he began unloading tools from his van on the morning of November 9, 2022, he allegedly turned towards the woman, exposing himself.

“The first I knew of it was when she pointed at me,” Thomas Jones told Haverfordwest Magistrates’ Court on Monday, where he was on trial for exposure.

“I was in shock. I felt embarrassed and awful. I felt bad.”

During cross-examination, Mr Jones, of Long Meadow, Adams Road, Monkton, admitted he did not wear underwear but insisted the exposure was accidental.

“I accept that it was outside my trousers, but I didn’t find her attractive, so why would I do all that?” he said. “It just doesn’t make sense.

“I’ve known my girlfriend for the past seven years, so why would I risk all that, plus risk losing the £300 from the job?”

GIVING EVIDENCE FROM BEHIND A SCREEN

The complainant said Mr Jones had knocked on her door and handed her a leaflet advertising his gardening services.

“I had some trees that needed cutting down, so I took him around, we chatted about it, and we agreed on a price,” she said.

After moving her car to allow Mr Jones to park his van, she claimed she saw what she described as ‘his flaccid penis’ hanging outside his trousers as she walked back into her house.

“I went inside, thinking, ‘That’s very weird’, and I knew it wasn’t right,” she said.

“I went back outside and told him that I’d changed my mind and didn’t want him to do the work anymore. I pointed at it, and I was really angry. I swore at him and asked him to leave.”

Despite apologising repeatedly, Thomas Jones, who has no previous convictions or police cautions, was reported and later charged with intentional exposure. He persistently denied the charge.

DEFENCE ARGUMENT

“The Crown has to prove that the defendant intentionally exposed his penis,” said his solicitor, Gareth Walters.

“But he wasn’t wearing underwear, and it came out of his trousers through his undone zip, which led to him being exposed. It wasn’t an erect penis, and it wasn’t intentional. It was a complete accident.”

After a short adjournment, Thomas Jones was found not guilty. An application for a restraining order against the complainant was refused by the magistrates.

A Pembrokeshire chef who was seen stumbling around in the road after crashing his car was found to be almost twice over the legal drink-drive limit.

Jamie Pope, 27, was seen stumbling in the road in the early hours of December 1 following a 14-hour cooking shift at a restaurant in Saundersfoot,  His vehicle, a VW Golf, had been involved in a one- vehicle collision and damage had been caused to its bumper.

“Police received reports that a car had been involved in an accident and the driver appeared to be intoxicated or on drugs,” Crown Prosecutor Sian Vaughan told Haverfordwest magistrates this week.

“Jamie Pope was seen stumbling around in the road and he appeared emotionally erratic and aggressive.”

When the officers approached Pope, he screamed at them, threatening to headbut one of the female officers.

“He said he was going to nut them,” added Ms Vaughan.

A roadside breath test proved positive while further breath tests carried out at the police station showed Pope had 65 mcg of alcohol in his system.  The legal limit is 35.

Pope, who previously resided at Maes yr Odyn, Narberth, pleaded guilty to drink-driving as well as an additional charge of obstructing or resisting an officer in the execution of their duty.

He was legally represented in court by Mr Michael Kelleher.

“He was going through a very emotional time in his personal life and he’d just worked a long 14-hour shift as a chef,” he said.  “He’d been drinking at work and crashed his car on the way home.  He was annoyed with himself, as he’d behaved outrageously.”

Mr Kelleher said that as a result of the offence, Pope has lost his job and his relationship had ended.

“He has now left Pembrokeshire and is living with his parents in Somerset.” he said.

Pope was sentenced to a 12 month Community Order during which he must carry out ten rehabilitation activity requirement days and 60 hours of unpaid work.  He was disqualified from driving for 17 months.

Police have confirmed that a six-month old baby girl has died following a collision on the ground floor of Tenby multi-storey car park on January 2.

Sophia Keleman, from the Leigh, Manchester, was taken to hospital, but died of her injuries on January 3.

Thirty-three year old Flaviu Naghi, from Wigan, has been charged with causing death by dangerous driving, driving without a licence and driving without insurance. He appeared before Swansea Magistrates Court on Saturday where he was remanded in custody to appear before Swansea Crown Court on February 7. He was also arrested in suspicion of drink-driving and drug-driving.

Dyfed-Powys Police has confirmed that Sophia’s family is currently being supported by specially trained officers.