Tributes to dad
FRIENDS and family have paid tribute to a Cardiff man who died suddenly after turning his life of crime around.
Father-of-two Matthew Ali, 50, died on August 17 at his home in Roath, Cardiff, due to a coronary artery thrombosis his daughter Rebecca described as “a blood clot near his heart”.
He worked as a chef at Mischief’s Cafe bar in Cardiff and was a keen bodybuilder. But it was a far cry from his early life when he was a drug addict, and had multiple crimes and jail sentences to his name.
Matthew’s 31-year-old daughter, Rebecca Summerfield, said her dad had not been around when she was very young and she finally met him when she was aged 15.
She said: “Dad grew up in New Tredegar with his brother, Lee. Friends said he was an awesome rugby player and was being chased by rugby scouts.
“He was doing well with his life, he went to catering college.”
But she said her dad’s life took a turn for the worst after two failed relationships.
“It was after this that dad said he turned to drugs to numb the feeling. Dad had an extensive criminal record, he once showed me and there were 13 pages - nothing too scary or worrying. However, he did end up doing time and the abuse cycle continued.
“Dad was staying in the YMCA when I met him. Within a year he had his own flat, however, he still struggled to get himself ahead.”
Rebecca moved to Australia when she was 18 and believes this helped her dad get back on track.
After Matthew visited in 2018, she said he suffered a depressive episode which made him “more determined than ever” to put his life on track and visit her again.
Matthew followed in his family’s footsteps to pursue bodybuilding.
His cousin, also called Matthew Ali,