This article is from the source 'bbc' and was first published or seen on . It will not be checked again for changes.

You can find the current article at its original source at http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/rss/-/1/hi/wales/8244281.stm

The article has changed 3 times. There is an RSS feed of changes available.

Version 0 Version 1
Man denies Facebook murder plan Man denies Facebook murder plan
(about 2 hours later)
A 31-year-old man accused of murdering his partner after she changed her Facebook status to single has said he did not deliberately plan to stab her. A man accused of murdering his partner after she changed her Facebook status from "married" to "single" has said he did not deliberately plan to stab her.
Brian Lewis, from New Tredegar, Caerphilly broke down in tears as he recalled what happened as he gave evidence at Cardiff Crown Court. Brian Lewis, 31, from New Tredegar, Caerphilly said he had wanted to touch her sleeping bag with a kitchen knife he had been using but "misjudged it".
He denies the murder of Hayley Jones, 26, the mother of their four children, in March 2007. He denies murdering Hayley Jones, 26, a mother of four, in March 2007.
He told the trial threats he had made just days before were "in drink". He told Cardiff Crown Court of "petty" arguments about her computer use, while she became secretive using her laptop.
Mr Lewis is accused of strangling Ms Jones at the home they shared. Mr Lewis is accused of strangling and stabbing Ms Jones at the home they shared.
He fled the scene during the early hours of 12 March, 2007 and drove to a police station, leaving the couple's four children to find their mother['s body in the living room. He fled the scene during the early hours of 12 March, 2007, leaving the couple's four children to find their mother's body in the living room.
I just said it out of frustration Brian Lewis He said he intended to kill himself by crashing his car but "chickened out" and rang the police to ask them to check on their children, the trial heard.
I didn't have an issue with her using it (the laptop), it was just when normal life was disrupted Brian Lewis
Peter Murphy QC, defending, called Mr Lewis to the witness box on Tuesday.Peter Murphy QC, defending, called Mr Lewis to the witness box on Tuesday.
The defendant broke down when he was asked about threats he has made at the Phllipstown Social Club on 8 March, 2007. Mr Lewis admitted the time Ms Jones spent on Facebook had been the cause of "bickering" within their home.
He told the jury he did have an issue with the amount of time Ms Jones was spending on a laptop computer he bought for her in February.
He said she would sometimes come home at 8am after working a 12 hour shift at a care home and stay up for "three to four hours" browsing the site before going to bed.
He said her free evenings were also spent on the computer.
"I would be trying to send the kids to bed and she would be on it," he said.
"You would try to talk to her and she would just ignore you. There were arguments."
He added: "I didn't have an issue with her using it (the laptop), it was just when normal life was disrupted."
He said Ms Jones was quite open about her activity on the computer at first but gradually became more secretive and would close the lid on the laptop whenever he came near.
He said a friend had told him that Ms Jones had changed her status on Facebook to single at the beginning of March.
When asked about the altercation that led to Ms Jones's death, Lewis told detectives she had questioned whether he was the father of their children.
He said, "out of frustration" he wanted to touch her sleeping bag with a kitchen knife he claimed he was using to trim his finger nails with.
'Frustration'
"I must have misjudged it and I must have mistimed it," he said in interview.
After being stabbed, Lewis told detectives Ms Jones responded by saying: 'What are you doing this for? We've got kids together' before adding 'Come here and give me a cwtch (Welsh for cuddle).'
He said he later found himself with his hands around Ms Jones's throat and only came to and released his grip when he heard one of his sons calling out from upstairs.
When asked by Mr Murphy what he did next, Mr Lewis replied: "I just panicked. I just sort of knew in my own head, you could see that she was dead."
Earlier, Mr Lewis broke down when he was asked about threats he has made at the Phllipstown Social Club on 8 March, 2007.
When asked there whether he thought his partner was chatting to men over the internet, Mr Lewis admitted saying to friends: "I hope she is not or that anybody else is chasing after her or I will slit their throats or cut their head off."When asked there whether he thought his partner was chatting to men over the internet, Mr Lewis admitted saying to friends: "I hope she is not or that anybody else is chasing after her or I will slit their throats or cut their head off."
He told the jury: "I just said it out of frustration. It is all right for me to say I would never do something like that but..."He told the jury: "I just said it out of frustration. It is all right for me to say I would never do something like that but..."
When Mr Murphy asked his client to complete the sentence following a lengthy pause, Mr Lewis replied in a voice cracking with emotion: "When you are in drink...you say you wouldn't do it really but after what I did to Hayley...I don't know how to explain it."When Mr Murphy asked his client to complete the sentence following a lengthy pause, Mr Lewis replied in a voice cracking with emotion: "When you are in drink...you say you wouldn't do it really but after what I did to Hayley...I don't know how to explain it."
After being given a moment to compose himself, Mr Lewis was asked: "Did you plan to deliberately stab Hayley?
Questions
He replied: "No".
His barrister then asked: "At the time you said what you had said in the club, did you have a plan to stab anybody with a knife?"
The defendant replied again: "No".
He added: "I was just saying it because they (his friends) were asking me questions."
The jury has heard that the couple had been together for 13 years and regarded themselves as husband and wife.
However, due to financial pressures after the defendant was made redundant from his job working on the railways in 2007, cracks had begun to appear in their relationship.
On 2 March, Ms Jones changed her relationship status to "single" following a row over the disciplining of one of their sons.
The court has head a post mortem examination found she died of strangulation.
Prosecutor Mark Evans QC said a chest stab injury was most significant.
He said it proved non-fatal as the blade's path had been blocked by Ms Jones' rib cage although it penetrated two sleeping bags and three layers of clothing she was wearing while trying to sleep on the living room settee.
The trial continues.The trial continues.