Killer’s mother blamed Pc over deaths – inquest
THE mother of a man who attacked a young woman at a Welsh hostel said if a police officer had “done her job properly” their deaths could have been prevented, an inquest has heard.
Matthew Williams’ mother, Sally Ann Williams, said the incident could have been avoided if her son had been moved to a different area after his release from prison, and that a psychiatric appointment should have been made.
Matthew Williams, 34, was under the influence of amphetamines when he used shards of pottery to cut Cerys Yemm’s face, neck and body at the Sirhowy Arms Hotel, in Argoed, near Blackwood, in the early hours of November 6, 2014.
Ms Williams told the jury: “She [Pc Alison Perry] could have saved Cerys and Matthew.
“I think she could have prevented it if she’d done her job properly.
“If Matthew got his [medical] drugs and had moved to a different area, it all could have been prevented.”
Miss Yemm, 22, who suffered at least 89 separate injuries including bite marks on her abdomen, died at the scene. She had gone with Williams to the hotel in Argoed, where he had been staying. Williams also died at the scene. The inquest heard that Gwent Police Pc Alison Perry had met Williams a number of times while he was in prison, including on August 27, 2014, when Pc Perry and Williams discussed plans for his release with probation officer Nick Tetley.
Pc Perry, who works as an offender manager in the integrated offender management unit (IOM) at Gwent Police, was the main point of contact to bring together various agencies to help Williams after his release from prison.
The jury at Gwent Coroner’s Court, in Newport, heard that Ms Williams sent a text to Pc Perry blaming her for the incident, and that she had also promised to arrange a “fast-track meeting” so her son could get anti-psychotic medication.
Ms Williams told the jury that Pc Perry should have organised a psychiatric appointment for her son, who was previously diagnosed with paranoid schizophrenia, and that an aftercare plan was not made for him.
Pc Perry said yesterday that Williams refused offers of help and that she could not arrange a psychiatrist appointment for him.
While giving evidence, Ms Williams disputed this and said that claims by her son’s GP that he was examined after leaving prison were not correct as they were having breakfast together as “they did almost every day” and that he only picked up a sick note.
Ms Williams said: “He had like a split personality. One minute he was good and the next minute he was up in arms.”
She told the jury that when her son was not taking his medication he was “depressed” and “violent”, but “quite calm” when he was taking it.
Ms Williams said her son “was a free man and he wanted to start a new life” after his release from HMP Parc in Bridgend.
The court had heard that Williams had wanted to move to Newport after he was released.
The inquest continues.