Merthyr Tydfil Magistrates' Court Sentencing Results

An employee suffered fatal crush injuries after being thrown from an all-terrain vehicle that overturned on a hillside at Wyesham, Monmouthshire, on August 25, 2022. The vehicle was being driven downhill when the driver lost control. An HSE investigation found inadequate training, no seatbelts, no routine pre-use checks, improperly inflated tyres, and the vehicle being driven in high gear and two-wheel drive instead of low gear and four-wheel drive. Allen Roberts pleaded guilty as the employer responsible for the farm.

Nathan Morgan breached a restraining order by repeatedly attending a protected person's address in Merthyr Tydfil on 7 July and 8 July 2026, causing significant fear and distress. He left before officers could detain him on the second occasion and was arrested after a search lasting around a fortnight.

Andrew Robinson, a retired vicar from Talybont-on-Usk, Brecon, was visited by police on 9 June 2026 as part of sex offender monitoring. Officers found an open laptop displaying animated graphic images of children engaging in sexual activity with adults. Robinson claimed he did not think the images were illegal and stated 'I have nothing else to do'. He was arrested and charged. He had previously received a suspended prison sentence in April 2025 for possessing indecent images of children.

David Tasker left an open wound on his terrier cross Benji's back leg to fester for a year, leading to chronic infection, skin issues from incontinence, and the dog having to be put down. RSPCA inspector attended his home on July 18, 2025, finding the dog with a makeshift bandage of parcel tape, overwhelming urine smell, hair loss, raised skin, and a deep open flesh wound on the left hind leg with disrupted hock joint. Tasker had used human mouthwash for maggot infestation and claimed daily washing, but failed to seek proper veterinary treatment despite prior knowledge of the dog's intervertebral disc disease.

Hannah O'Brien, 26, from Merthyr, repeatedly targeted shops in Merthyr Tydfil committing retail crime. She was issued a Community Protection Notice barring her from entering TK Maxx, Tesco and Farmfoods, but breached the conditions by entering the stores.

Daniel Giles, 30, from Merthyr Tydfil, committed a string of high-value shoplifting offences in the area, repeatedly targeting retailers in the town.

Between September 14, 2024, and April 2, 2025, at Robert Street, Ynysybwl, Pontypridd, Jamie Selby failed to ensure the needs of his male crossbreed dog named Marley were met by not providing adequate veterinary treatment for his chronic skin condition, resulting in hair loss, warty lumps, and a perineal hernia that blocked the bowel. RSPCA Inspector Sophie Daniels visited on September 15, 2024, advised treatment, offered a vet voucher, and found four dogs in three crates. Selby ignored follow-ups, refused entry two months later, and on April 1, 2025, Marley was seized under warrant. The dog had suffered for at least six months and was euthanized due to complications.

Corey Coleman, a 26-year-old volunteer at Ynyscrug livery yard in Tonyrefail, Rhondda Cynon Taf, was caught on CCTV engaging in acts of sexual abuse towards horses. He abused a bay stallion named Bear and a palomino stallion named Benny by masturbating them and inserting fingers into their anus on multiple dates in June and July 2024. He also failed to ensure the welfare of these stallions and exposed a bay mare named Nala to the risk of injury from the stallions. The abuse likely occurred over many months, with children present nearby at the busy stables, and the horses appeared conditioned to the behaviour.

On 9 January 2023 Aymen Essa was working illegally without an SIA licence as a security guard at a Rhondda construction site within an industrial estate. South Wales Police responded to an alarm at the site on 8 January 2023 and found him wearing a high-visibility jacket. He was deployed by a Cardiff-based security company. The case was referred to the SIA’s Criminal Investigations team. Essa attended an interview under caution at Cardiff Bay Police Station on 23 May 2023 but refused to answer questions.

Geoffrey Williams failed to protect a pony from pain, suffering and injury through an unacceptable handling method. He was ordered to pay £1,800 at Merthyr Tydfil Magistrates' Court.

Jodie Clark, of Merthyr Tydfil, uploaded threatening and abusive videos to YouTube over a period between April 12 and April 18, directing the content at his victim in behaviour that constituted stalking. He was arrested and charged on April 19 and appeared at Merthyr Tydfil Magistrates’ Court on April 21, where he entered a guilty plea.

Leah Evans pleaded guilty to outraging public decency and criminal damage and was sentenced to three months in prison.