A MAN has appeared before magistrates charged with brandishing a Samurai sword in an alleged street fight in Pembroke Dock town centre.

Michel Valmont, 47, was arrested on June 15, 2024, after police were called to a fracas in Pembroke Street. The Crown claims that officers discovered Valmont in possession of a sharp pointed weapon, namely a samurai sword.

This week he appeared before Haverfordwest magistrates where he entered no pleas to being in possession of the samurai sword and a second charge of affray by using threatening violence towards another person.

Given the seriousness of the alleged offences, magistrates declined jurisdiction and the case will now proceed at Swansea Crown Court on June 20.

Valmont, of Water Street, Pembroke Dock, was released on unconditional bail.

A HAVERFORDWEST man has been fined after driving a friend’s car without a valid licence or insurance.

Dyer Dastom, 23, was stopped by police on May 3 while driving through Market Street, Haverfordwest. Checks revealed he was not driving in accordance with the terms of his provisional licence, rendering the vehicle uninsured.

Dastom, of Dew Street, appeared before Haverfordwest Magistrates’ Court this week, where he pleaded guilty to driving otherwise than in accordance with a licence and driving without third party insurance.

The case was heard with the assistance of a Farsi interpreter, as Farsi is the official language of Iran.

Addressing the court, Dastom said: “I’ve never been to court before, and I appreciate the police work and the work that everyone is doing here. I’m not going to do this kind of thing again, and I’m not going to be coming to court again.”

Magistrates fined Dastom £120 and endorsed his licence with six penalty points. He was also ordered to pay £85 in court costs and a £48 victim services surcharge.

AN OIL rig fabricator has been banned from driving after being caught over the legal alcohol limit while behind the wheel in Pembroke Dock.

Police were called to Bush Street shortly before 11:00pm on May 2, after a member of the public reported concerns about a black van being driven erratically.

“They’d seen a black van pull out very fast and stop at the kebab shop,” Crown Prosecutor Dennis Davies told Haverfordwest magistrates this week. “The driver was then seen banging on the door and was obviously drunk.”

Officers arrived to find 37-year-old Peter Sykes, who admitted he was driving the Ford van. A roadside breath test was positive, and a further test at the police station revealed 86 microgrammes of alcohol in 100 millilitres of breath – more than double the legal limit of 35.

Sykes, of Salamander Close, Grimsby, pleaded guilty to driving while over the alcohol limit and chose to represent himself in court.

“It was stupid,” he told magistrates. “I had problems at home and there’s nothing more I can say. It was stupid and I shouldn’t have done it.”

He explained that he works as a fabricator at oil refineries across the UK and Europe. “My boss said he’ll try and keep me in work, but if the disqualification affects my job, I’ll have to hand in my notice,” he added.

Magistrates disqualified Sykes from driving for 20 months. He was fined £3,500 and ordered to pay a £200 victim surcharge and £85 in costs.