TWO CARE assistants accused of wilfully neglecting a dementia sufferer were cleared of all charges yesterday.

Judge Roderick Denyer heard applications from the counsel of all seven defendants charged with wilfully neglecting 52-year-old Alan Sayers.

Mr Sayers, who suffered from front lobe dementia, was found dead in his room at the Mountleigh Care Home, Newbridge, on September 27, 2004 at around 4am. He was supposed to be receiving 24-hour one-to-one care.

Jury members were told they were discharged from finding a verdict in relation to care assistant Michael Lurvey, 54, of Greenfield, Newbridge, and 60-year-old agency care assistant Margaret Lewis, of Prospect Place, Cwmbran, as the crown accepted there was no case to answer.

Judge Denyer said there was “simply no evidence” against Mr Lurvey and Mrs Lewis Mountleigh Care Home general manager Dawn Harris, 52, of Raglan Mews, Newport, and care manager Enda Evans, 56, of Glyn Derw, Caerphilly, are jointly charged with wilfully neglecting Mr Sayers between December 18, 2002 and September 28, 2004.

Care assistant Rosslyn Jenkins, 54, of Alexandra Place, Newbridge, agency care assistant Chengeta Kaziboni, 34, of Cowbridge Road West, Cardiff, and qualified nurse Musediq Salisu, 47, of Viscount Evan Drive, Newport, are jointly charged with wilfully neglecting Mr Sayers between September 25 and September 18, 2004.

GP Sushma Ohja, 55, of Hillside Park, Bargoed, is charged with making false representations on Mr Sayers’s death certificate and cremation certificate and also falsely obtaining £50.70 from Gwent Police by claiming she attended the home in her capacity as a police doctor.

The care home is now called Millview House and Lodge and is run by Southern Cross Care Homes.

The defence case is expected to open today.

Proceeding.