Murder accused expects to die in prison

A man accused of the murder of a retired riding instructor has told a jury he expects to die in prison.

Wendy Buckney, 71, was found battered and stabbed at her home in Clydach, Swansea, in August 2022.

Brian Whitelock, who is defending himself at Swansea Crown Court, told the jury he had no memory of what happened and that he was suffering from two separate brain injuries and heard voices.

He admits manslaughter on the grounds of diminished responsibility, but denies murder.

The court was shown CCTV and heard audio recordings of Mr Whitelock outside Ms Buckney's flat covered in blood, telling a neighbour he had killed her.

She was found naked and her body was covered with furniture.

Ms Buckney had been attacked with a table leg, a piece of shelving and had been stabbed repeatedly.

Her injuries were so severe, a pathologist was unable to accurately count the stab wounds.

Mr Whitelock described her death as horrific.

He told the court: "I am sorry, I can't ever forgive myself. I can't come to terms with what's happened. I expect to die in jail. I deserve to. I have no recollection."

In the weeks before Ms Buckney died, Mr Whitelock claims he suffered two significant head injuries.

He told the court "everything changed" after he fell from a derelict bridge while fishing.

He described his attack on Ms Buckney as "totally out of character".

In 2001, Mr Whitelock was sentenced to life in prison for killing two men including his own brother at a house in Swansea.

He told the court: "Twenty odd years ago I killed someone in a fight.

"People go on about a history of violence, I have no history of violence apart from that. I served a long sentence and kept my head down.

"If I hadn't had the bang on the head, this wouldn't have happened."

Mr Whitelock said he did not remember going into her house and being there.

"What can I say? I am accepting responsibility. It must have been me that caused Wendy's death," he said.

"What else can I say - I suffered two head injuries."

Mr Whitelock said he did odd jobs for Ms Buckney including laying kitchen tiles and gardening work.

"I knew her for quite some time. She was really lovely, one of the most genuine people I know," he added.

"She helped me a lot. It's difficult to talk about. She would do anything to help me.

"Before all this happened I had a normal life on a day to day basis, I was no bother to anyone."

He said he had suffered memory loss and confusion.

He said he became so confused he forgot that he was a father of two children - a son and daughter.

Mr Whitelock told the court prior to Ms Buckney’s death he went days without sleep and food and was prescribed strong sleeping tablets by his doctor.