Man shot at cafe with a crossbow in feud, court told
AMAN fired a crossbow at a cafe in the middle of the afternoon as part of a “longrunning feud” with the owner, a court has heard.
Gareth Griffiths had drunk a bottle of wine and six cans of lager before issuing a series of lurid threats over the phone to the cafe boss, then arming himself with the weapon.
Swansea Crown Court heard he fired one bolt at a car parked near the business, then one at the front of the premises while staff were inside. A subsequent breath test showed he was almost twice the legal drink-drive limit at the time.
The court heard that at just after 4.30pm Griffiths drove up to the cafe, and got out of his vehicle, and fired one crossbow bolt at car parked nearby before reloading and firing another at the front of the cafe. The court heard Mr Wade had left the premises just minutes earlier but other members of staff were still inside. The incident was witnessed by a number of people working in nearby units on the industrial estate, as well as by children. The 44-year-old defendant drove off and police were called. The prosecutor said officers were soon on the scene, and while they were at the cafe Griffiths returned - he was arrested and breathalysed, and was found to have 67mg of alcohol in 100ml of breath, the legal limit being 35mg.
In his subsequent interview the defendant gave a prepared statement in which he said he had been “living in fear” of Mr Wade since the summer of 2021, and that the cafe boss had threatened to kill him with a knife.
Gareth Albert Griffiths, of Frederick Place, Llansamlet, Swansea, had previously pleaded guilty to possession of an offensive weapon, affray, two counts of criminal damage, and to driving with excess alcohol when he appeared in the dock for sentencing.
Ian Ibrahim, for Griffiths, said the defendant and Mr Wade had been friends for “some considerable time” before their relationship broke down. He said the dad-oftwo had taken over his father’s milk business and as Gower Creamery had been running a successful company before the pandemic struck and he eventually had to let his 12-strong workforce go. He said alcohol was an issue in his client’s life and that he was also suffering with depression and anxiety, and that his substantial financial debts had not helped his “fragile mental health” at the time of the incident.
Judge Paul Thomas QC said Griffiths had issued “lurid threats” against Mr Wade and some of his friends, and had drunk a significant amount of alcohol before arming himself with a crossbow. He said it must have been a terrifying experience for those caught up in it, especially the children.
With discounts for this guilty pleas Griffiths was sentenced to a total of 18 months in prison comprising 18 months for the weapon charge, 12 months for the affray, one month for each of the criminal damages, and one month for the driving with excess alcohol all to run concurrently.
Griffiths was disqualified from driving for a total of 21 months, and was also made the subject of a restraining order banning him from contacting his victim for the next three years.