Crime

Defendant denies causing injuries to two-month-old baby

Published

3 days ago

December 2, 2025

Christopher Phillips explains “rattle” incident during questioning

CHRISTOPHER PHILLIPS, the 28-year-old man accused of sexually assaulting and causing serious physical harm to a two-month-old baby in January 2021, continued giving evidence before the jury this morning (Tuesday). Phillips repeatedly denied causing any injury to the infant — referred to in court as Baby C — and insisted he had never harmed him physically or sexually.

Phillips is on trial alongside the baby’s mother, who cannot be named for legal reasons, who is charged with causing or allowing serious physical harm. Both defendants deny the allegations.

Relationship and childcare involvement

Phillips told the court he met the baby’s mother on Tinder when the child was about two weeks old. He said his involvement in caring for the infant increased after Christmas 2020 but was limited to occasional help with feeding, bathing and nappy changing. He said the mother was “95 per cent of the time” present when he undertook any care tasks.

He said he first saw bright red blood in the baby’s nappy around 12 January 2021, which he attributed to constipation and a possible haemorrhoid, saying he recognised the condition because he suffered from them himself.

On the night of 23–24 January, Phillips said he changed the baby’s nappy three times. At around 22:17, he took a photograph of blood in the nappy and sent it to the mother, who was in the living room, explaining he thought it might be useful if she needed to show a doctor. He told the jury the baby’s anus “did not look injured” during any of the changes.

Sex toys and pornography

The jury were shown photographs of a number of sexual items recovered from a drawer beside the bed. Phillips confirmed that several of the items — including anal beads, butt plugs, an inflatable anal device, lubricant and a bottle of amyl nitrate (“poppers”) — belonged to him.

He accepted that he and the mother had engaged in anal play using toys, though he said there had never been penile-anal intercourse. He acknowledged viewing anal pornography and said he had deleted some search history and intimate photographs from his phone out of “embarrassment”.

The “rattle” incident

Phillips also admitted an incident involving one of the baby’s rattles. He said that after “mucking around” with the mother on the sofa, he picked up the rattle from the floor, mistaking its shape for a sex toy:

“I picked it up and began to press it against my anus, but never actually inserted it.”

He described the moment as “a moment of jocularity”.

After the prosecution concluded its questioning, John Hipkin KC, began a forceful cross-examination.

Hipkin KC put it to Phillips that the significant anal injury later identified in hospital could only have been caused by one of the two adults present in the flat that night.

He highlighted that Phillips had changed the baby’s nappy three times without noticing any injury and questioned him about his detailed knowledge of anal lubrication, dilation and the use of fingers before larger objects.

Hipkin KC suggested Phillips had used Sudocrem as a lubricant to insert a finger into the baby on or around 15 January, and again on the night of 23–24 January. Phillips denied this repeatedly: “Absolutely not.”

Phillips said he left the flat shortly before 03:00am on 24 January with the baby “settled and quiet”. He also denied deleting any material involving the baby from his phone.

Observations about the mother

Asked about the co-defendant’s care of the child, Phillips described her as “a loving mother”, though he recalled two occasions he found unusual: one where she placed the baby down “hard and fast” into the cot while tired, and another where she sat staring at a wall for around 20 seconds while holding him.

Clear denials

Phillips ended his evidence by telling the jury: “I absolutely did not harm Baby C physically or sexually.”

The trial continues this afternoon (Tuesday, Nov 2) before His Honour Judge Paul Thomas KC.

Crime

Man accused of Milford Haven burglary and GBH remanded to Crown Court

Published

14 minutes ago

December 5, 2025

Court Reporter

A MILFORD HAVEN man has appeared in court charged with burglary and inflicting grievous bodily harm, following an incident at a flat in the town earlier this week.

Charged after alleged attack inside Victoria Road flat

Stephen Collier, aged thirty-eight, of Vaynor Road, Milford Haven, appeared before Llanelli Magistrates’ Court today (Friday, Dec 5). Collier is accused of entering a property known as Nos Da Flat, 2 Victoria Road, on December 3 and, while inside, inflicting grievous bodily harm on a man named John Hilton.

The court was told the alleged burglary and assault was carried out jointly with another man, Denis Chmelevski.

The charge is brought under section 9(1)(b) of the Theft Act 1968, which covers burglary where violence is inflicted on a person inside the property.

No plea entered

Collier, represented by defence solicitor Chris White, did not enter a plea during the hearing. Prosecutor Simone Walsh applied for the defendant to be remanded in custody, citing the serious nature of the offence, the risk of further offending, and concerns that he could interfere with witnesses.

Magistrates Mr I Howells, Mr V Brickley and Mrs H Meade agreed, refusing bail and ordering that Collier be kept in custody before trial.

Case sent to Swansea Crown Court

The case was sent to Swansea Crown Court under Section 51 of the Crime and Disorder Act 1998. Collier will next appear on January 5, 2026 at 9:00am for a Plea and Trial Preparation Hearing.

A custody time limit has been set for June 5, 2026.

Chmelevski is expected to face proceedings separately.

Crime

Prosecution delivers powerful closing speech in Christopher Phillips trial

Published

4 hours ago

December 5, 2025

Tom Sinclair

Jury expected to retire shortly in Swansea Crown Court baby abuse case

THE TRIAL of Christopher Phillips, accused of inflicting catastrophic injuries on a 10-week-old baby in Haverfordwest, moved into its final stages today (Dec 5) as the last evidence was heard and the prosecution delivered a forceful closing speech at Swansea Crown Court.

***Christopher Phillips: Told the court earlier this week that he was “proud” of his appearance.***

Phillips, 34, of Kiln Park in Burton, is charged with causing serious physical and sexual harm to Baby C in January 2021. The infant was taken by ambulance to Glangwili Hospital in the early hours of January 24 after suffering life-threatening internal injuries.

The baby’s mother faces separate charges of allowing serious physical harm and child cruelty for allegedly failing to protect her child.

Final evidence presented

The court resumed at 11:09am, when the prosecution submitted its final exhibit: a detailed timeline reconstructed from Phillips’ mobile phone data, charting his visits to the mother’s flat in Haverfordwest.

Prosecutor Caroline Rees KC highlighted the distances between Phillips’ home, the mother’s address and Glangwili Hospital, telling the jury that the timings were central to understanding the sequence of events that night.

This concluded the evidential phase of the trial.

Judge issues legal directions

Late this morning (Friday, Dec 5) Judge Paul Thomas KC delivered his directions to the jury, outlining the legal tests required for convictions against both Phillips and the child’s mother. He reminded jurors to consider each charge separately and to apply the law only to the evidence they had heard.

Prosecution closing speech

In her closing address at early this afternoon, Rees KC told the jury that 10-week-old Baby C had been a “happy little baby” who showed “no signs of distress” in a video recorded by his father on January 23, 2021.

She said that within hours, by the early morning of January 24, the infant was in hospital with what she described as a “gaping tear in his anus”.

Rees KC argued that the evidence of who caused the injuries “points in one way – towards Christopher Phillips”.

Turning to the baby’s mother, she said the prosecution’s case was that she was “not without blame”, telling the jury that the mother had “failed in her duty to keep her baby safe”.

“She at the very least ought to have realised that her baby was at serious risk from the man she brought into her home,” Rees KC said. “She didn’t take any steps to keep that baby safe. She prioritised Christopher Phillips over her own child.”

Jury expected to retire

No defence closing speech was delivered today, that will be on Monday.

No further evidence is scheduled.

The jury is expected to retire early next week to begin its deliberations.

The case continues at Swansea Crown Court.

Crime

Swansea man dies weeks after release from troubled HMP Parc: Investigation launched

Published

18 hours ago

December 4, 2025

Tom Sinclair

A SWANSEA man has died just weeks after being released from HMP Parc, the Bridgend prison now at the centre of a national crisis over inmate deaths and post-release failures.

Darren Thomas, aged 52, died on 13 November 2025 — less than a month after leaving custody. The Prisons and Probation Ombudsman (PPO) has confirmed an independent investigation into his death, which is currently listed as “in progress”.

Born on 9 April 1973, Mr Thomas had been under post-release supervision following a period at HMP/YOI Parc, the G4S-run prison that recorded seventeen deaths in custody in 2024 — the highest in the UK.

His last known legal appearance was at Swansea Crown Court in October 2024, where he stood trial accused of making a threatening phone call and two counts of criminal damage. During the hearing, reported by The Pembrokeshire Herald at the time, the court heard he made threats during a heated call on 5 October 2023.

Mr Thomas denied the allegations but was found guilty on all counts. He was sentenced to a custodial term, which led to his imprisonment at HMP Parc.

Parc: A prison in breakdown

HMP Parc has faced sustained criticism throughout 2024 and 2025. A damning unannounced inspection in January found:

Severe self-harm incidents up 190%
Violence against staff up 109%
Synthetic drugs “easily accessible” across wings
Overcrowding at 108% capacity

In the first three months of 2024 alone, ten men died at Parc — part of a wider cluster of twenty PPO-investigated deaths since 2022. Six occurred within three weeks, all linked to synthetic drug use.

Leaked staff messages in 2025 exposed a culture of indifference, including one officer writing: “Let’s push him to go tomorrow so we can drop him.”

Six G4S employees have been arrested since 2023 in connection with alleged assaults and misconduct.

The danger after release

Deaths shortly after release from custody are a growing national concern. Ministry of Justice data shows 620 people died while under community supervision in 2024–2025, with 62 deaths occurring within 14 days of release.

Short sentences — common at Parc — leave little time for effective rehabilitation or release planning. Homelessness, loss of drug tolerance and untreated mental-health conditions create a high-risk environment for those newly released.

The PPO investigates all such deaths to determine whether prisons or probation failed in their duties. Reports often take 6–12 months and can lead to recommendations.

A system at breaking point

The crisis at Parc reflects wider failures across UK prisons and probation. A July 2025 House of Lords report described the service as “not fit for purpose”. More than 500 people die in custody annually, with campaigners warning that private prisons such as Parc prioritise cost-cutting over care.

The PPO investigation into the death of Darren Thomas continues.