Man murdered son's girlfriend over 'scam delusion'

A 50-year-old man has been found guilty of the "senseless and cowardly" murder of his son's 30-year-old partner after he falsely claimed she was "scamming" him out of the deeds for his mother's house.

Sophie Evans's body was found lying face down and naked on the kitchen floor of a house in Llanelli, Carmarthenshire, on 5 July 2024, after she was attacked and strangled.

Richard Jones, from Burry Port, Carmarthenshire, admitted manslaughter with diminished responsibility but denied murder.

A jury at Swansea Crown Court took less than three hours on Thursday to find him guilty of murder.

There were shouts of "scumbag" from the public gallery as Jones was sent down.

The court previously heard how, on the day of the attack, Ms Evans had just returned home to Bigyn Road from dropping off her two children at school when Jones visited.

He was said to have been a "regular visitor" carrying out "odd jobs" at the property.

He was arrested later the same day after exchanging multiple texts and phone calls with family and friends.

The jury saw an exchange between Jones and his former partner, Tracey Thompson, in which he called his son, Jamie Davies, and Ms Evans "scamming thieves" and said he had "taken care of the problem".

In psychiatrist interviews after his arrest, he said he believed he had been "tricked" out of the deeds for his mother's house by his son and Ms Evans.

During police interviews, Jones told officers his "head went" over the "scam" and he was "erratic".

He said he remembered going to Ms Evans' house on the morning of the murder to look at drains at the property, adding he "lost his head" when she said "nothing" about the "scam".

Jones then said he did not remember anything about the attack, except being "down the country park" hours later.

5 July 2024

• 09:19 - Jones arrived at Ms Evans's home, captured on doorbell camera
• 10:00 - CCTV showed Jones running back to his car, returning to the house and then driving away
• 10:35 - Jones left his home address by car and drove to Pembrey Country Park, which was caught on CCTV
• 17:27 - Dyfed-Powys Police received a 999 call reporting that Jones had killed Sophie Evans
• 17:42 - Jones texts his ex-partner, asking her not to say anything to police, having exchanged messages with her earlier in the day
• 20:00 - Jones was found by police near the entrance to Pembrey Country Park, arrested on suspicion of murder and taken to hospital where he remained for four days

David Elias, defending Jones, said his client's thoughts about being scammed were "falsely held beliefs" caused by a delusional disorder.

Consultant psychiatrist Dr Dilum Jayawickrama, who interviewed the accused, said Jones was "100% certain in his beliefs" he had been scammed.

The court heard Jones told officers he had been taken to a solicitor's office by Ms Evans to sign forms, leading him to believe he had signed over the deeds to his mother's house.

"There is not a single shred of evidence to say that was true," said Mr Elias.

Mike Jones, prosecuting, said Jones "was not experiencing significant emotional distress" at the time of the murder and showed "callous indifference" to what he did to her.

Mr Jones told the jury the defendant had "by his own admission, a historic short fuse", and on the day of the incident "had lost his temper, attacked Sophie and strangled her, causing her death".

Judge Geraint Walters said the only sentence the court could pass was life imprisonment.

Jones will be sentenced on 3 March.

Following the verdict, Det Supt Gareth Roberts said Dyfed-Powys Police welcomed the the decision reached by the jury.

"Richard Jones has been found guilty of what was a senseless, cowardly act triggered by anger and temper. Sophie was within her own home and not in a position to defend herself from Richard Jones's cruel act of violence.

"The family will take some comfort that he's now removed from society and cannot harm any others."