A dead man was left to rot in his bedroom by his friend. Jamie Russell went about his normal routine for several weeks before he was found out.
He kept quiet about the fact that the body of missing man Mathew Scott was in his flat, despite the fact that police and his family were looking for him. It was only when maggots started dropping into the shop below the flat that events caught up with Russell.
Now he has been sent to prison, with a judge telling him that his actions meant that Mr Scott's family were left not knowing what had happened to him, while his body had not been given the dignity it deserved. Prosecutor Sian Cutter told Swansea Crown Court that Mr Scott was reported missing on June 9 last year and police began a review of CCTV footage to try to establish his whereabouts.
Those checks showed that Mr Scott, 42, had left his flat on June 4, but after that he disappeared. Hospitals around the Neath area were checked as well, to no avail.
The court was told that police spoke to a man who knew Mr Scott. He told them that he had seen the missing man near the flats by the William Hill betting shop in Neath town centre earlier in the month.
He wasn't sure of the exact date, but put it between June 7 and 9. On June 28 officers went to the bookmakers and staff reported they had experienced an issue with maggots coming through the ceiling - they said they had contacted a pest control firm, which had determined the maggots were coming from the flat above the business, reports WalesOnline.
The prosecutor said officers went to the Coastal Housing flat in question and noticed flies around the door frame. They repeatedly knocked on the door but the tenant - 45-year-old Russell - did not answer and officers were on the point of forcing entry when the defendant let them in.
The court heard police immediately noticed a "very strong smell" in the property and noted a number of candles and a rolled up T-shirt had placed in front of the door to the bedroom. In the bedroom police found the body of Mr Scott on a mattress and covered in a blanket. He was identified by tattoos on his body and was still wearing the same clothes as he had been seen wearing on the day he left his flat.
The court heard Russell told officers he and Mr Scott had taken heroin and his friend had said he wanted to sleep, so he had placed a blanket over him and gone to watch a film. He said he had later found Mr Scott unresponsive and had tried mouth-to-mouth resuscitation. He also said he gave him a naloxone spray, which reverses the effects of opioid drugs.
Miss Cutter said it had not been possible to establish a cause of death for Mr Scott and there were no signs of significant injuries. She said an entomologist examined fly larvae on the body and had determined they had been present as early as June 10.
The barrister said it was the prosecution case that Mr Scott died sometime between June 7 and June 10. The court heard that a subsequent examination of CCTV footage from around the area showed Russell coming and going from his flat and engaging in "daily business" from June 8 up until the day he was arrested.
In his interview Russell gave a prepared statement in which he said he had known Mr Scott for around 10 years, having met him in Neath. He said they had both taken heroin at his flat and Mr Scott had said he wanted to sleep, so he had gone to watch a film. He said he panicked when he found his friend's body and had slept little since.
In an impact statement from Mr Scott's partner and the mother of his two adult sons that was read to the court by the prosecutor, she described the devastating effect of the death and the pain at the inability to properly say goodbye - family were advised not to view the body due its level of decomposition. In the letter she said the family still had so many questions about what had happened, about how their loved one had died and about why Russell had not sought help and left the body when he knew people were looking for his friend.
Jamie Malcolm Martin Russell, now of St John's Terrace, Neath Abbey, Neath, had previously pleaded guilty to preventing a decent and lawful burial when he appeared in the dock for sentencing. He had two previous convictions for four offences of theft.
John Allchurch, for Russell, said the defendant had "stuck his head in the sand" after the death of his friend and it had to be accepted he had done nothing to aid the recovery of the body. He said his client was "devastated" about what had happened and felt grief and sadness at the loss of this friend and he said his Russell had asked him to apologise to Mr Scott's family in court.
The advocate said there were letters and reports before the court detailing the defendant's mental health issues and he said the defendant had a long history of homelessness, but now had stable accommodation, was engaging with agencies, and was changing his life. He invited the court to pass a sentence that was not one of immediate custody.
Judge Huw Rees said it had to be made clear that the court was sentencing the defendant not for the death of Mr Scott but for preventing a decent burial. He said because of Russell's inactions the family of Mr Scott had been left not knowing what had happened to their loved one, while Mr Scott himself had not received the dignity he deserved in death.
He said the offending was so serious only immediate custody was appropriate. With a one-third discount for his guilty plea, Russell was sentenced to two years in prison. He will serve up to half that period in custody before being released on licence to serve the remainder in the community.
