'Angry 21-stone bully' who dragged 71-year-old woman from bed when she confused his home with B&B guilty of murder
29 March 2023, 15:12 | Updated: 30 March 2023, 00:30
An "angry bully" who killed an elderly woman after dragging her by her feet and stamping on her when she confused his home with a B&B has been found guilty of murder.
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Margaret Barnes, 71, was visiting Barmouth in Gwynedd, north west Wales, when she got mixed up with her accommodation.
The Birmingham resident had been drinking as she visited friends in July last year, and meant to stay at a B&B on Marine Parade.
Instead, she accidentally went into the home of David Redfern, 46, who lived on the same road, then went into a bedroom and fell asleep. Michael Jones KC had described Redfern as an "angry bully" who had anger issues.
When the 21-stone thug went to bed, Redfern discovered Mrs Barnes drinking gin, with a suitcase open and her false teeth on a table.
Redfern, who now faces a life sentence, had said in evidence: "There was a lady lying in our bed, drinking and smoking."
He said he had asked "who the hell are you?" and said Mrs Barnes told him it was her room and "I'm meant to be here".
Redfern, who stands 6ft 1ins high, dragged her by her ankles down the stairs, then kicked and stamped on her, causing traumatic liver injury and internal bleeding.
He then refused to call an ambulance as she died of injuries likened to a high-speed car crash.
The court was told Redfern "mocked her as she began complaining of chest pains". She told people at the scene he was lying as he denied attacking her.
"I threw her out the bedroom, dragged her down the stairs by her ankles and threw her out the door," he told police in bodycam footage shown to Caernarfon Crown Court.
"You do not expect to find someone else in your bed. I just wanted to get this strange woman out of the house."
The court was shown CCTV footage in which Redfern, an IT worker at a bank, told his partner he did not mean to kill her, to which she said: "You could have just escorted her out. It's an old lady."
He had drank up to seven pints and had a gin and tonic earlier.
"I thought Mrs Barnes was very drunk, I am truly sorry for the comments I made. I lost my temper towards her that evening, and said some appalling things," Redfern had said.
Redfern, who had denied both murder and manslaughter of Mrs Barnes, is due to be sentenced on Friday.
Detective Superintendent Mark Pierce, of North Wales Police, said: "Our thoughts remain with Margaret's family and friends today. It would be inappropriate for me to offer further comment prior to sentencing."
Mrs Barnes' devastated family added: "Margaret, who was a much-loved wife, mother and grandmother has now been gone for eight months.
"As a family it has been the hardest time of our lives. It has been especially difficult for Margaret;s husband who had been her partner for 56 years.
"We now have some sort of closure on what has happened however no length of sentence will ever fill the void that Margaret has left behind.
"As a family we would like to thank the police their hard work in putting the case together. We would also like to thank Katherine and Arwyn, the family liaison officers, for their support, the jury for their time and also KC Mike Jones and his prosecution team."
