THE FAMILY of a former rugby league player who was left in a coma after a for more than 10 months have spoken of their delight after he was able to visit them at home for the first time - but said he is still unable to walk or talk.
Scott Bessant was found with life-changing injuries in Pentwyn Lane, Abersychan, in the early hours of Sunday August 13, in 2017 after spending the previous evening in the Little Crown pub.
It remains a mystery how the ex-Welsh Dragonhearts full back, who was left in a coma until February 2018, was hurt.
But this week, his brother-in-law Neil Chere said that while there had not been any significant improvement in the father-of-two's condition, he had been able to spend Christmas Day at home with his family.
“That was a massive thing for us," he said.
Scott Bessant was left in a coma for 10 months. Picture: Naomi Bessant
“A massive thank you goes out as we had two ambulance drivers give up their Christmas Day to drive Scott home and back.
“It meant so much to us.”
Mr Bessant - who suffered multiple fractures to his skull, a fractured neck, 12 fractures to his back, a fractured pelvis, a bleed on the brain, a broken collarbone and broken ribs and damage to the diaphragm - underwent rehabilitation at Rookwood Hospital, but has now left the hospital and moved to a care facility.
Mr Chere said: “He is still unable to walk or talk.
“Sometimes you will be with him and think that he recognises you.
It is still unknown what happened to former rugby league player Scott Bessant. Picture: Naomi Bessant.
“He is now in a care home environment rather than a hospital environment.
“Everyday, we still hope that we will find out what happened to him and hope that he will recover.”
Last year, Mr Bessant’s family and friends launched a JustGiving page and completed the South Wales Three Peaks Trial to raise money for a specialist vehicle for him.
They hope that having the vehicle could aid his recovery and allow him to see new surroundings.
Mr Chere said that the fundraising had been successful and the family were now in the process of looking for a vehicle that would allow them to wheel the 6ft 4in father-of-two into it from the back.
He said: “We are now at the point where we believe that we have raised enough for a specialist vehicle.
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“We are now in the process of looking for that.
“Where we are more focused at the moment is looking at the adaption of his house.
“We will be looking to continue fundraising later this year.”
In August 2018, a year after the incident, Gwent Police said: "[We] conducted a thorough investigation into the circumstances of this case. At this time, there are no further lines of enquiry available to pursue, although we will investigate any further information. Anyone with information is asked to call 101 quoting log 136 13/08/17 or Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800555111."
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