Woman involved with ‘fantasist’ died after overdose
AWOMAN involved in a “manipulative and controlling” relationship with a “Walter Mitty character” who claimed to be a spy died after taking an overdose of prescription drugs.
Anna Jura, 44, was found unresponsive at the home she shared with Gary Rich, 74, in Mountain Ash, in the early hours of June 22 last year and was later pronounced dead at the scene.
Her partner Rich – a fantasist who pretended he was an MI5 agent who went on missions abroad – claimed she had locked herself in the kitchen and had later told him she had taken overdose and had been drinking but he thought she was joking.
He said they had been involved in an argument earlier in the evening over a curtain rail and described Polish national Ms Jura as being “homesick”.
When he went up to their bedroom he said he found her semi-conscious and kneeling by the bed in a distressed state before she became fully unconscious.
But an inquest hearing at Pontypridd Coroners’ Court yesterday heard Rich’s account could not be relied upon due to his history of lying and his conviction for forcing a woman into prostitution.
In September this year pensioner Rich was jailed for nine years and three months at Southwark Crown Court after pleading guilty to assisting unlawful immigration, intentionally causing a person to become a prostitute, and trafficking for sexual exploitation.
The victim, who cannot be named for legal reasons, was not Ms Jura but it was said at the inquest that Rich was “grooming” her for prostitution.
The inquest heard Ms Jura and Rich became involved in a relationship in 2015 after he replied to an advert of Ms Jura’s for Polish lessons.
In August of that year she moved into his home in Rheola Street, Mountain Ash, but the relationship between the couple was described as “strange” by Ms Jura’s family. Her two sisters, Wioletta and Monika Jura, described how Rich would have to “take control” of a conversation and would frequently slap Ms Jura hard on her back.
On June 22, Wioletta received a message from Rich asking her to call him urgently. When she called him Wioletta was told by Rich that something had happened.
She said: “He said it had been a hot day and he had gone out but when he got back they had an argument and he had slapped her. She went upstairs, had taken pills and drunk bourbon.
“I said to him: ‘What are you telling me? Is she dead?’ And he said: ‘Yes she’s dead.’”
A statement was read to the inquest by Monika Jura. She said Rich had told Ms Jura he was a “spy” and had been out in Russia and other countries.
Giving evidence to the inquest, Detective Inspector Ritchie Rees of South Wales Police said: “Gary Rich is an extremely odd individual and has been described as a Walter Mitty character living in a fantasy world of his own making. He has a history of pretending to be from MI5 or a spy. He suggested he was a field officer and was engaged in missions abroad and had houses in various European countries but none of this was true.”
A post-mortem examination of Ms Jura’s body and a toxicology examination found she had taken a “cocktail” of prescription drugs prior to her death and had alcohol in her system.
An official cause of death was given as toxicity combined with the affects of prescription drugs taken with alcohol.
Ms Knight recorded a narrative conclusion which read: “Anna Jura took a large quantity of prescription medication available in her home. She died from the likely combined toxic affect of prescription drugs taken with alcohol in circumstances which were unclear.”
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