Heir to Pie Fortune Convicted of Best Friend’s Murder

A jury has convicted the heir to a pie company fortune of murdering his closest friend. The conviction follows an incident on Christmas Eve where the victim was stabbed 37 times in the residence they shared. The verdict from a jury at Cardiff Crown Court established that Dylan Thomas was responsible for the death of William Bush, aged 23, on December 24, 2023. Thomas, 24, had previously admitted to manslaughter but pleaded not guilty to murder. Prior to the assault in Llandaff, Cardiff, he had researched the anatomy of the neck. He was equipped with both a large kitchen knife and a flick knife during the incident. Thomas is the grandson of Sir Stanley Thomas, who founded Peter’s Pies, a company based in south Wales. Sir Stanley Thomas, whose net worth was estimated at £230 million in 2013, attended the trial proceedings in court. Weeks prior to this event, Dylan Thomas had been apprehended for attempting to climb the fence at Buckingham Palace. He is currently receiving treatment for schizophrenia at a secure hospital. The jury retired on Thursday morning to deliberate and delivered its guilty verdict several hours later. Greg Bull KC, the prosecution barrister, informed the court that victim impact statements were in preparation, stating that the forthcoming sentence “has to be one of imprisonment.” The judge expressed gratitude to the jury for the “care” they demonstrated in their duties and for listening to the “deeply upsetting evidence” presented throughout the trial. Sentencing is scheduled for December 16. Outside the courtroom, Catrin Bush, the victim’s sister, conveyed the family’s profound devastation over the “brutal and senseless murder.” Ms. Bush characterized Thomas as an “evil, manipulative liar,” adding that the family had observed “no evidence of any remorse or taking responsibility for his actions that day.” She continued, “Will was such a loyal, funny, caring and trusting person. He lit up every room he went into with his cheeky grin and quick-witted humour.” “We cannot even begin to comprehend the fear and suffering that Will endured on Christmas Eve last year,” she stated, elaborating that he had been preparing to go back to his family in Brecon when the assault occurred. “Instead of Will arriving at our door for dinner on Christmas Eve, it was Dyfed-Powys Police to deliver the beyond devastating news.” “We ask that he is remembered as the great person that he was, and that his memory is not defined by this barbaric attack.” Following the verdict, Detective Inspector Rebecca Merchant of South Wales Police commented that Mr. Bush’s death occurred just as he was preparing to move in with his girlfriend and commence a new job. She further stated, “As he looked forward to spending Christmas with his family and girlfriend, he was killed by someone he regarded as his friend, having done nothing to warrant the brutal violence inflicted upon him.” During the trial, the prosecution asserted that Thomas, despite being in a “downward spiral,” was in control of his actions when the killing took place. Testimony presented in court indicated that on the morning of the assault, Thomas’s grandmother, Sharon Burton, drove him to Llandaff. She recounted that he grew “more and more agitated” and sent numerous text messages. After she parked outside the residence, Thomas entered, retrieved the knives, proceeded to Mr. Bush’s bedroom, and stabbed him multiple times. The prosecution reported that passers-by “heard screams of horror” emanating from the house. A distraught Thomas then banged on his grandmother’s car window, and she subsequently discovered Mr. Bush on the outdoor patio. In a 999 call made after the attack, requesting an ambulance, Thomas asserted that his friend had “gone mental” and stabbed him. However, the prosecution informed the trial that it was “a planned attack” by Thomas against Mr. Bush, and that Thomas “deliberately armed himself with knives and attacked him from behind.” Expert testimony presented to the court suggested that Thomas had been experiencing psychosis for several months prior to the homicide. Jurors were informed that following his arrest for the killing, he told police officers he was Jesus and extended an offer of a “job with God” to one officer. After his previous arrest at Buckingham Palace, he had discussed the “illuminati” controlling the world. The court heard that Thomas held a belief in his ability to harness gravity and, upon his arrest at Buckingham Palace on November 6, 2023, he informed police that he was “exploring energy fields.” Dr. Panchu Xavier testified to jurors that his patient was experiencing psychosis upon admission to Ashworth High Secure Hospital in Liverpool in March 2024. Thomas and Mr. Bush had maintained a friendship since their school days at Christ College in Brecon, Powys. The court was informed that while Mr. Bush enjoyed popularity, Thomas had few friends and was generally perceived as a loner. Orlando Pownall KC, representing the defense, stated during the trial that Thomas’s psychosis was not in question, but rather the timing of its onset was disputed. Mr. Pownall informed jurors that Thomas had experienced “a lot of stressful situations,” including his parents’ separation and “alleged domestic violence.” The Thomas family enterprise began as Thomas Pies in the 1950s, distributing sausage rolls, pies, and pasties throughout the south Wales valleys. It was rebranded as Peter’s Pies in the 1970s and is currently known as Peter’s Food, with its base in Bedwas, Caerphilly county. The late Stan Thomas transferred ownership of the company to his sons, Stan junior—Dylan Thomas’s grandfather—and Peter, who was the former chairman of Cardiff RFC rugby club and passed away in 2023. The company was sold by them in 1988. Copyright 2024 BBC. All rights reserved.