The carer fled the house in fear
A man spat at and threatened his mother’s carer (Image: Media Wales)
A man threated his mother’s carer with a kitchen knife and asked her if she wanted to die, a court has heard. Tristan Phillips pulled the blade on the home care worker as she prepared a coffee for his mum, and told her to get out of the house – then spat at her when she fled in fear of her life.
Regan Walters, prosecuting, told Swansea Crown Court that on July 25, 2024, a support worker attended the home of a client to tend to her needs.
He said that as she entered the property Phillips came running down the stairs waving his arms about “aggressively” and shouting “What the f*** are you doing here?!” The defendant then left the property. Don’t miss a court report by signing up to our crime newsletter here.
The court heard that the Neath Port Talbot Council carer prepared a meal for her client and shortly afterwards the defendant returned to the Neath Valley house with his grandfather and shouted “I don’t want you her! Get the f*** out!”.
The prosecutor said while the carer was in the kitchen making a coffee for the client the defendant entered the room and slapped the cup out of her hand before removing a knife from a drawer and raising it above his shoulder while shouting “Do you want to f***ing die?”. Phillips then told the carer to get out, and as she left the kitchen the 27-year-old defendant spat at her.
The court heard that once outside the property the carer contacted her manager to report what had happened, and the police were then notified.
When officers arrived they arrested the defendant and seized a knife along with two bags of cannabis from a counter top in the kitchen. In his subsequent interview Phillips said he had asked the carer to leave the property and he denied picking up a knife or making threats, and denied spitting.
In an impact statement which was read to the court by the prosecution barrister, the carer said she could not stop thinking about what happened and had installed a CCTV system at her home in the hope it would help her feel safer and help her sleep but it had not. She said the experience of having a knife pulled on her while going about her job had impacted her work and made her concerned about attending peoples’ homes.
Tristan Phillips, of Empire Avenue, Blaengwrach, Neath Valley, had previously pleaded guilty to affray and common assault – the spitting – when he returned to the dock for sentencing.
Counsel for the defendant said that “for whatever reason” the relationship between the defendant and the carer had broken down and a complaint had been made to the council, and he said as a result a different member of staff had been calling at the property. He said on the day in question a shortage of staff meant the original carer had turned up unexpectedly, something which shocked his client. He said Phillips had been a carer to his mother from an early age and was “overly-protective” of her, and wished he could “turn the clock back”.
The court heard that following the knife incident the council had withdrawn all home care support. The court also heard that the defendant’s mother has since passed away.
Judge Huw Rees told Phillips it was clear from everything he had read that he had cared for his mother for many years and had “put her needs above yours”. He said on the day in question the defendant’s “over protectiveness” led to “a very serious overreaction” which had seen the carer fearing for her life.
With a one-fifth discount for his guilty plea Phillips was sentenced to 14 months in prison suspended for 18 months. He was ordered to complete a rehabilitation course and a mental health treatment requirement, and to do 200 hours of unpaid work in the community.
Judge Rees told Phillips: “You have escaped going to prison by a hair’s breadth”.
The court heard that in July this year the defendant was given 12-month conditional discharge at Swansea Magistrates Court for possession of the cannabis which police found at his house on the day of the incident, prompting the judge to say “What business did magistrates have doing this?”
Get daily breaking news updates on your phone by joining our WhatsApp community here. We occasionally treat members to special offers, promotions and ads from us and our partners. See our Privacy Notice