THESE criminals from across west Wales are among those who were handed the longest sentences in 2023.
Three of the defendants – including the murderers of two-year-old Lola James and 22-year-old Cameron Lindley – were jailed for life.
The other criminals were jailed for offences including paedophilia, robberies, drug trafficking and dealing, arson, and stabbing a friend over some milk. They were locked up for a combined total of more than 72 years.
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Here is a round-up of cases from the first six months of 2023. The defendants’ details are correct as of their date of sentence.
KYLE BEVAN
Kyle Bevan was found guilty of murdering two-year-old Lola James.
Bevan, 31, of Aberystwyth, had denied a charge of murder, claiming that the family dog had knocked Lola down the stairs on July 17, 2020.
Lola died in hospital four days later.
The jury heard Lola suffered 101 visible injuries from Bevan’s abuse. Her ultimately fatal injuries were described as being of the severity you would see in a car crash or a fall from a great height.
Sentencing Bevan, Judge Mr Justice Griffiths said: “This was a sustained, deliberate and very violent attack. The attack was completely unprovoked.”
Bevan was jailed for life, and will serve a minimum of 28 years in prison.
SINEAD JAMES
Sinead James was found guilty of allowing the death of her daughter Lola.
The jury heard that James initially thought of Kyle Bevan as “her protector”, having just got out of an abusive relationship. She maintained she didn’t think that Bevan would be a danger to her children, despite several incidents involving them being injured in his care.
The court heard James had “failed to take any steps to protect Lola James” from Bevan.
Judge Mr Justice Griffiths said: “She prioritised the relationship with Kyle Bevan over concern for her children.”
James, 30, of Neyland, was jailed for six years.
TYLER LINDLEY
Tyler Lindley was jailed for life for murdering his brother in a “savage” knife attack a property on Treforis in Betws.
On September 8 last year, following a family gathering, the defendant, 22-year-old Cameron and their mum ate dinner in the kitchen.
Lindley got went for a cigarette and was “glaring” at Cameron before he grabbed a knife.
“The defendant then sniggered and apologised towards Cameron, before launching towards him,” the prosecution said.
Lindley “repeatedly stabbed” at Cameron, who managed to get outside, while their mum rang 999.
Cameron suffered 19 injuries to his arms, chest and back, as well as defensive wounds to his hands, and "significant injuries" to his neck.
The defendant was taken to hospital, and told a doctor: “I’ve done something bad. The voices made me do it.”
Lindley, 20, had said on several occasions in the months previous that Cameron was the “golden child” and that he “wanted to kill him”.
Judge Paul Thomas KC sentenced Lindley to life imprisonment, with a minimum sentence of 18 years.
“The sentence is one of life imprisonment. I believe in your case, it's entirely possible you will never be released,” he stressed.
MARTYN ARMSTRONG
‘Sadistic’ paedophile Martyn Armstrong was sentenced to life imprisonment after admitting raping babies as young as 12 months old.
Her Honour Judge Lloyd-Clarke described his actions as “shocking”, adding: “This was sexual abuse of the very worst kind with very young children.”
The court heard that Armstrong committed multiple rapes against two infants who were between the ages of one and three.
On August 11, 2010, Armstrong covertly photographed a little girl as she undressed on an undisclosed beach in Pembrokeshire.
These images were then shared on the internet and subsequently found on the dark web. The child and her family were unaware of Armstrong's actions.
Law enforcement partners across the world had been trying to identify Armstrong ever since the abuse material was first posted in 2010.
In 2017, Italian investigators linked the name “Martyn” to the person who took the images, but were unable to progress the case further.
The same year, a French investigator identified the beach which had been seen in some images linked to the offender as being in Pembrokeshire by studying the geology of the landscape and the rocks on the beach.
Armstrong was identified in July 2022 after specialist National Crime Agency investigators reversed distortion filters which the defendant had used to disguise his face.
He was subsequently stopped and arrested by South Wales Police officers whilst driving on the M4.
It was discovered that at the time of the abuse Armstrong lived in Derbyshire, but in January 2022 had sold his house and moved to Haverfordwest.
Armstrong was sentenced to life imprisonment. He must serve a minimum of 14 years and was made the subject of a sexual harm prevention order for 25 years.
JACK JONES
Jack Jones, 23, was found to have contacted children between the ages of nine and 14 on Instagram and sent them sexually explicit messages from April 2019 to August last year.
Police raided Jones’ home after reports from the mums of a 14-year-old and a nine-year-old, seizing several of his devices.
This uncovered a further 14-year-old he was messaging.
While on bail and under investigation for those offences, Jones sent explicit messages to another nine-year-old and a 13-year-old.
Officers also found five indecent pictures and videos, the most serious of which involved a video of a girl between the ages of 13 and 15 performing a sex act on herself.
Jones, who’s listed address was HMP Parc Prison, must register as a sex offender indefinitely, and was made the subject of a sexual harm prevention order for the rest of his life.
Judge Geraint Walters sentenced him to a total of 12 years in prison.
JEFFREY DAVIES
![Western Telegraph: Cocaine dealer Jeffrey Davies was jailed for 12 years.]( "Western Telegraph: Cocaine dealer Jeffrey Davies was jailed for 12 years.")
Cocaine dealer Jeffrey Davies was jailed for 12 years. (Image: South Wales Police)
Jeffrey Davies, 53, was jailed for possession with intent to supply Class A drugs.
The Swansea Organised Crime Team of South Wales Police seized 14 kilos of cocaine – with an estimated street value of in excess of £1 million – from his address in Ystalyfera in September 2022.
Davies was sentenced to 12 years at Swansea Crown Court on January 23.
DEAN ROSSER
Dean Rosser was arrested at Carmarthen railway station after taking a Cardiff to Milford Haven train on April 19.
Officers found that he had 15.8 grams of heroin on him, divided into eight bags. These had a street value of around £1,580, while one gram of crack cocaine, worth around £100, was also seized.
Swansea Crown Court heard that Rosser’s phone was examined by officers, and messages revealed he had been dealing cocaine and heroin since February 11.
Rosser pleaded guilty to being concerned in the supply of cocaine and diamorphine (heroin), as well as possession with intent to supply both cocaine and diamorphine.
Rosser, 56, of Barn Street in Haverfordwest, was sentenced to a total of 2,045 days (around five years and seven months).
ROBERT THOMAS
Robert Thomas, 41, was caught by police coming out of his address on Corporation Street in Aberystwyth on July 15, 2020, with blue powder around his lips.
Officers searched his home and found 101,000 blue and white tablets in various containers, including two large buckets. They also found a bag containing three grams of herbal cannabis, as well as a small set of weighing scales and 0.77 grams of cannabis under his bed.
While being checked in to custody, Thomas was found to have more blue tablets in a snap bag between his buttocks, £480 in cash and a Motorola mobile phone.
It is believed Thomas had bulk-bought what he thought was Diazepam tablets on the internet to sell on.
However, forensic testing of the tablets revealed that 3,211 of them were Flualprazolam which fall within the Psychoactive Substances Act 2016, while the other 97,814 were paracetamol that had been dyed blue.
The street value of the tablets seized, if sold as Diazepam, would be between £101,000 and £202,000 if sold singularly.
Officers found significant evidence of drug dealing – offering to sell cocaine, MDMA, amphetamines, cannabis and Diazepam – on his phone.
Thomas was convicted following trial at Swansea Crown Court, where he returned to be sentenced for a total of five-and-a-half years on Friday, 20 January.
ANDREW SACKETT
Andrew Sackett was jailed after stabbing his “drinking pal” in the head in an argument over milk.
Sackett, 44, was drinking at his friend of 20 years’ home on Penybanc Road in Ammanford, and an argument broke out in the early hours of Monday, August 1.
The victim thought the argument started over the taking of some milk.
Sackett “smashed up” the victim’s laptop and television, and punched the victim in the ribs, and stabbed him multiple times in the head with a knife, leaving him “bleeding profusely”.
When the police arrived, Sackett was “slurring his words” and was “aggressive and abusive towards them” and was “shouting at [the victim] saying he owed him £10,000”. The victim denied owing Sackett any money.
Judge Catherine Richards jailed Sackett, of Pontypridd, for five years, and ordered the defendant will serve an additional five years on extended licence. He was also made the subject of an indefinite restraining order which bars him from contacting the victim and from entering Ammanford.
ANTHONY BENTLEY
Anthony Bentley robbed his local newsagents after stealing more than £200 of electrical and home goods from B&M.
Bentley, of Meyrick Street, entered Spencers Newsagents on Bush Street in Pembroke Dock three times on April 1, and on the third time “went straight behind the till and acted aggressively towards the member of staff”.
Bentley grabbed £280 in cash from the till.
He was arrested at a nearby address less than an hour later, with police officers finding him hiding in a bedroom wardrobe. He had £60 on him as well as a silver wrap on the table containing brown powder – thought to be heroin.
The court heard that, at the B&M store in Pembroke Dock on January 27, Bentley loaded a trolley with electrical and home items – including a microwave, a soup maker, a George Foreman grill, and bedding – totalling £229.56.
He pushed the trolley straight past the tills and out to his car, where he was “was verbally aggressive” towards the member of staff who confronted him, and said his wife was in the store with a receipt.
Bentley then pushed the trolley towards the member of staff and got in his vehicle.
Judge Huw Rees sentenced Bentley to four years and eleven months for the robbery from the newsagents, and six months, running concurrently, for the theft from B&M.
Judge Rees commended the bravery of the member of staff throughout the robbery.
DANIEL MCKENZIE
Daniel McKenzie, 31, of The Green in Pembroke, appeared at Swansea Crown Court on March 15 where he was jailed after attacking and trying to rob a taxi driver.
McKenzie turned up at his sister’s house in Pembroke Dock on September 4, 2022, and was drunk. She told him to leave and gave him £5 for a taxi.
While in the taxi, the defendant took a joint out of his pocket. The taxi driver asked him to not smoke it, but he responded: “It’s not your car, don’t worry”.
When asked again, he put a lighter to the driver’s throat, saying “Watch what I can do with this” and threatening to take his money.
McKenzie grabbed the driver’s throat and punched him in the face. The driver pulled over and got out of the car, telling McKenzie to get out. He punched him again several times, which led to the driver pushing him to the floor.
When McKenzie got up, he went to go for the car door, but the driver stood in the way to block his access to the money.
A member of the public intervened and the police arrived, taking the driver to hospital and arresting McKenzie.
Recorder Christian Jowett sentenced McKenzie to 54 months in prison for the robbery and 10 months for the assault, with the sentences to run concurrently.
ANDREW LOWNDES
Andrew Lowndes tried to hide heroin in the back seat of a police car after he was arrested.
Lowndes was a passenger in a car stopped by police as it travelled on the A40 on March 6.
He was taken to Haverfordwest Police Station to be searched, but the officers noticed that he was fidgeting with his handcuffs and the front of the seat he was sitting on.
It transpired he had stashed a package of 13.9 grammes of heroin under the seat, which had a street value of £1,390.
Lowndes, 52, of Goshawk Road in Haverfordwest, was handed a four-and-a-half year prison sentence.
DANIEL MEYLER
Daniel Meyler, 42, formerly of Williams Terrace in Cardigan, was caught by police as he drove across south Wales with heroin hidden in his rectum.
Meyler had driven to Newport in Gwent with his co-defendant Patrick Byrne on October 16, 2021, and bought what he thought was 14 grams of the class A drug.
The court heard he took half a gram of heroin in an alley before “plugging” the rest and heading back home. He was stopped by police on the journey back, and the drugs were discovered.
He had denied he intended to sell it, insisting it was for personal use to allow him to function before he was able to get a Subutex prescription, but after a three-day trial, the jury unanimously found him guilty.
Meyler had admitted possessing 11.7 grams of heroin and supplying cannabis.
The judge, Recorder B Siddique, jailed him for four years and six months for the heroin supply, with eight months, running concurrently, for supplying cannabis.
Byrne, 49, of Maes y Deri in Cardigan, admitted a charge of possession with intent to supply the Class A drug. He was jailed for three years and nine months.
LLOYD JENKINS
Lloyd Jenkins was found guilty by a jury of setting fire to his then-partner’s flat after storming out after an argument.
Jenkins and his ex-partner had been out at Milford Haven’s Circles nightclub and had an argument, going back separately to the home they shared.
His partner asked him to stay after he asked to borrow a phone to call his brother, and then the defendant lost his temper and threw a canvas at his partner – hitting her in the face.
She fled to a neighbour’s home, and around half an hour later the fire alarm went off. The defendant had set three fires in the flat, while the victim’s dog was still inside.
Jenkins, 33, of The Ponds in Hundleton, had denied all charges.
He was found guilty by a jury at Swansea Crown Court on March 13 after a two-day trial, and was sentenced to four years in prison for arson, as well as three months – concurrently – for battery.
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