A mother and three of her sons attacked a family who were enjoying a night out in Neath town centre, a court has heard. As members of the public looked on Kelly Jones and her boys Corey, Dominic and Ben set upon the group, who were on a "Christmas jumper night", with their fists and feet.
The attack resulted in one of the victims being knocked unconscious, losing five of this teeth, and facing a £17,000 dental bill. Hannah George, prosecuting, told Swansea Crown Court that the victims of the assault – a father and mother, their daughter, and the daughter's partner – were enjoying a "Christmas jumper night" in Neath town centre on the night of December 3 into December 4, 2021. She said at around 1.40am the group were in the Topolis pizza takeaway in The Parade when an unknown male made a comment about the weight of the daughter. This incident sparked a prolonged assault on the victims outside the takeaway by the Joneses which saw the victims pushed and shoved and repeatedly punched and kicked.
READ MORE: Empty Neath town centre shop being used as £160,000 cannabis farm
The most severely injured of the family was the father who was taken to the floor and kicked and punched to the body and head multiple times. It is believed he briefly lost consciousness during the attack. The court heard the daughter tried to protect her dad from the onslaught by positioning her body over his head only to be attacked herself. The prosecutor said the mother of the family later described the Joneses as acting like "wild animals".
Police were called to The Parade and when the blue lights of the officers' cars and vans appeared on the scene the Jones family melted away into the crowd with Corey Jones taking his mother's coat and putting it on and Dominic Jones removing his distinctive yellow and black jacket. The daughter of the family was subsequently given the name of one of the assailants via social media and on December 12 and December 13 the Joneses were arrested and interviewed. Get the latest crime and court stories sent straight to your email inbox with our free newsletter.
The court heard the most seriously injured of the family was the father who had been repeatedly kicked and punched as he lay on the pavement. He suffered fractures to his nose and eye sockets, had a top front tooth knocked out, and suffered four loose lower teeth which subsequently had to be removed. In his victim impact statement which was read to the court he said he had been left feeling anxious and vulnerable and suffering with flashbacks and nightmares. He said he was very conscious of the damage to his teeth and was facing a £17,000 bill for dental work. The other family members who were attacked all suffered cuts, bruises, and grazes with one saying in their impact statement they now feel uncomfortable about going into Neath and another saying they had trouble sleeping.
The court heard an identification procedure involving Corey, Dominic, and Ben Jones was carried out in January 2022 and the case was submitted to the Crown Prosecution Service for a charging decision on September 30 that year but the file was returned to police as the CPS wanted clarification of the injuries suffered. The file was resubmitted in January this year but was returned again as the information requested had not been provided. The file was submitted for a third time in March but no charging decision was authorised as one of the documents had not been signed. Authorisation to charge was eventually given on April 28 and the defendants were subsequently charged via letter. The prosecutor said there had "clearly been a significant delay" in the case and a letter had been submitted to the court from a detective sergeant setting out the history of the case and saying "lessons have been learned".
Kelly Jones, aged 43, Corey Jones, aged 26, and 23-year-old Dominic Jones – all of Warren Close, Penrhiwtyn, Neath – had previously plead guilty to affray when they appeared in the dock for sentencing. Kelly Jones has seven previous convictions for 10 offences including battery, assaulting an emergency worker, and public order matters. Corey Jones has four previous convictions for six offences including three of assault occasioning actual bodily harm and burglary with intent to commit grievous bodily harm. Dominic Jones has one previous conviction for burglary – an offence he carried out with his older brother Corey. Ben Jones, aged 21, of Golwg y Dre, Neath, who also admitted affray, has no previous convictions.
Ieuan Rees, for Kelly Jones, said the mother-of-nine accepted she was "the worse for wear with drink" on the night in question and was "thoroughly ashamed" of her behaviour. He said one of the defendants had challenged the person who made comments about the daughter's weight in the takeaway but he accepted that did not explain why the Joneses subsequently attacked the daughter and the other members of her family. Steve Burnell, for Corey Jones, said the defendant had been engaging well with probation following his release from prison and on the night in question had drunk "eight or nine pints" and "just wishes he had walked away". The barrister said that since the offending in Neath his client had become a father and now has a one-year-old son.
David Singh, for Dominic Jones, said it was accepted the defendant had played his part in an "appalling incident" and he "bitterly regrets" his involvement. He said his client was a father of three children and played a "significant part in their lives" and was in a long-term relationship with a woman who herself had two children. Andrew Evans, for Ben Jones, said the defendant had been 19 at the time of the disturbance and accepts his behaviour had been "wholly unreasonable" whatever the circumstances of the incident in the takeaway. He said the defendant had a one-year-old son and was expecting another child with his partner.
Judge Christopher Vosper KC said it was not clear how the incident in the takeaway had led to the violence seen on the streets of Neath and he noted the involvement of all four defendants at various stages. He also noted the delay in the case, which he said was not attributable to the defendants and for which they would receive an appropriate reduction in their sentences.
With one-third discounts for his guilty plea and a four-month reduction to reflect the delay in the case Corey Jones was sentenced to 18 months in prison. With a one-third discount for his guilty plea and a three-month reduction for the delay Dominic Jones was sentenced to 15 months in prison. They will serve up to half those sentences in custody before being released on licence to serve the remainder in the community.
The judge said he was satisfied there was a realistic prospect of rehabilitation in the case of Ben Jones, and with a one-third discount for his guilty plea and a three-month discount for the delay he sentenced him to nine months in prison suspended for two years and ordered him to complete a rehabilitation course. Judge Vosper said he was not sure there was any prospect of rehabilitation in the case of Kelly Jones but he said he was concerned about the impact immediate custody would have on the young child who still lived at home with her. With a one-third discount for her guilty plea and a three-month discount for the delay Kelly Jones was sentenced to 15 months in prison suspended for two years and was ordered to complete a rehabilitation course and a 90-day alcohol monitoring requirement.
You can sign up to our regular Crime and Punishment newsletter here while this interactive tool allows you to check the latest crime statistics for your area:
