Rhodri Wyn Llewellyn was sentenced to eight years for beating up and robbing a 75-year-old man in his own home
A HOODED robber who launched a "sustained and merciless" attack on a 75-year-old man in his own home, repeatedly punching him in the face before dragging him around the house demanding money, has been jailed.
Swansea Crown Court heard the victim thought 25-year-old Rhodri Wyn Llewellyn was going to beat him to death, and that the ordeal has left him "psychologically and physically broken" and a virtual recluse.
The robbery netted Llewellyn just £40.
Two days after he burst into the pensioner's Glanaman house and attacked him, Llewelyn set about a stranger on a footpath in Ammanford and began punching him — but this second victim was able to fight back and pin him down until police arrived.
Llewelyn, of Ffordd y Glowyr, Betws, Ammanford, had previously pleaded guilty to robbery, assault occasioning actual bodily harm and to an unrelated offence of breaching a restraining order when he appeared in via videolink for sentencing.
The court heard that on the evening of April 16 a householder living in Maesybont, Glanaman, noticed his house's rear security light came on — thinking it might be his neighbour in need of assistance, he went to investigate.
Kevin Jones, prosecuting, said that as soon as the 75-year-old man opened his back door he was punched hard in the face by a gloved hand.
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Llewellyn then burst into the kitchen and rained blows down upon the defenceless man, punching him in the face around a dozen times.
Llewllyn then grabbed the man and "threw" him across the kitchen and onto the floor before punching and kicking him in the back.
Mr Jones said: "The victim said 'he just started beating hell out of me', he said he thought he was going to die."
The court heard Llewellyn then dragged the pensioner by the arm into the living room and demanded money — when his victim handed over £20 he said that wasn't enough and dragged him upstairs to a bedroom to get more money.
After his attacker fled with some £40, the bloodied and shocked victim went to a neighbour's house to raise the alarm.
The court heard the pensioner suffered a broken nose and bruising and swelling to his face, along with swelling on his back and blood in his urine.
Two days after the raid Llewellyn attacked a 56-year-old man who was walking home from work along a lane off Manor Road in Ammanford.
Llewellyn knocked the man to the ground but the victim fought back, grappling with his attacked and eventually sitting astride him and punching him until he subdued him.By that stage people living nearby had called police, and officers were quickly on the scene.
The court heard details of an impact statement from the 75-year-old in which he said being attacked in his own home had "absolutely broken me physically and emotionally".
He said he had been in good health and had enjoyed a "lovely social life" prior to the incident but now felt frightened and was "almost a recluse" and had to sleep with a night-light on.
He said his "whole life has been turned upside down by the actions of one man" adding "he destroyed my life and for what? £40".
The victim said he felt sorry for Llewellyn's family and especially his father who run's Wyn's Auto in Glanaman, a garage business he himself had used before the attack.
The court heard Llewellyn has four previous convictions for six offences, including for possession of drugs and drink-driving, and was on a suspended sentence for his part in an affray outside The Square pub in Ammanford at the time of the robbery.
Ian Ibrahim, for Llewelyn, said it was "hard to fathom" why his client had behaved the way he had, and that his remorse for what he had done was "absolute".
Judge David Hale said he could not understand why Llewellyn had launched the attack on his victim.
He told him: "As soon as the door was opened and you burst in, you must have seen that he was a man of some age.
"He was a man living along. You mercilessly beat him up. It is almost impossible to understand how you could do that."
The judge described the attack as "sustained and merciless", and said the impact on the victim would last a lifetime.
For the robbery Llewellyn was sentenced to eight years, and for the street assault four months, both sentences to run consecutively. For breaching the restraining order — an unrelated matter which involved sending an offensive text message to an ex-partner — he was sentenced to one month, which will run consecutively with the robbery and assault sentences. No separate penalty was imposed for breaching his suspended sentence
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