James Hughes, 67, a former jeweller, is to be sentenced on Thursday afternoon for the Christmas Day murder of his neighbour Harry Turner, 68, which he audio recorded. The chilling recording of the killing and Mr Turner’s last words were heard during a trial at Caernarfon Crown Court.
Details of the Killing
Hughes, of The Old Palace Flats in St Asaph, wore a dictaphone around his neck and sat on top of Mr Turner before beating him with his walking stick on Christmas Day last year. The trial heard Hughes had frequently been banging on his wall with his walking stick to the extent that Mr Turner was about to move into alternative temporary accommodation to get some sleep.
The confrontation on December 25, 2025, occurred because Mr Turner made complaints about noise from Hughes' property. During the altercation outside Hughes' flat, Hughes ended up sitting on his neighbour. The jury heard a recording made by Hughes, in which Mr Turner was heard telling Hughes to “get off me” and that “I can’t breathe”, to which Hughes replied “what a ******* shame”, and “you can ******* die for all I care”.
Aftermath of the Incident
After the incident, Hughes went back into his flat, turned on the radio, and made himself a hot drink. In a phone call to his nephew some time later, which was still being recorded on his dictaphone, Hughes said: "I think I may have killed someone." When Hughes eventually called for an ambulance, he told emergency call handlers that he thought Mr Turner may have had a heart attack, saying: "I hit him with my stick and he fell and he banged himself against the window."
A post-mortem examination found Mr Turner died as a result of asphyxia and had suffered blunt force trauma to his face and head. Hughes denied murder and manslaughter but was found guilty of murder by the jury.
Sentencing Hearing Begins
The sentencing hearing at Caernarfon Crown Court began at 14:17 BST. Judge Mr Justice Nicklin entered the courtroom, but the dock was empty. Defence barrister Gordon Cole KC told the court that James Hughes had failed to leave his cell and turn up to court. Mr Cole said he was content for the sentencing hearing to continue in his client’s absence. The prosecution is represented by John Hipkin KC and the defence by Gordon Cole KC.
