THE five-year jail sentence handed to a Cwmbran man who killed his wife at the start of lockdown last March, has been referred to the Court of Appeal by the Attorney General as being 'unduly lenient'.

Anthony Williams, 70, admitted manslaughter by diminished responsibility after killing his wife Ruth, 67, in Cwmbran on March 28 last year.

He was found not guilty of murder last month, and was sentenced to five years in prison.

The Attorney General Michael Ellis has now sent the case to the Court of Appeal for review.

A spokesperson for the Attorney General’s office said: “The Attorney General was shocked by this case. After careful consideration he has decided to refer the sentence of Anthony Williams to the Court of Appeal, as he believes the sentence is unduly lenient.

“It is now for the Court to decide whether to increase the sentence.”

MORE NEWS:

During Williams' trial at Swansea Crown Court, the jury was told of how he had not slept for several days, suffered with anxiety and depression, and was worrying about money, health and coronavirus, when he “choked the living daylights” out of his wife.

Judge Paul Thomas said during sentencing that Mr Williams’ mental health was “severely affected at the time” of the killing.

“The overwhelming greatest tragedy here is a lady of 67 who had so much to live for, had her life ended by an act of great violence at the hands, literally, of a man she loved for very nearly 50 years," he said.

Home Secretary Priti Patel has ordered a review to be carried out by the Torfaen Public Service Board due to her lack of satisfaction in their decision to not carry out a domestic homicide review, due to there having been no contact with domestic services.

The board is now carrying out that review.

Harriet Harman and a number of other MPs had written to the Attorney General calling for a review of the sentence.