Duo Jailed after Cwmbran Shopping Centre Metal Pole Attack

Two men have been sentenced at Newport Crown Court after being caught wielding a metal pole during a brawl at Cwmbran Shopping Centre. 👮‍♂️⚖️

Aaron Boucher, 24, of no fixed abode, and Joshua Southwell, 26, of the Greyhound, Commercial Street, Pontypool, appeared in court on February 24 after pleading guilty to affray, assault by beating of an emergency worker and possessing an offensive weapon in a public place.

The altercation on March 18, 2023, was heard by officers from inside the police station. Upon arrival, four men fled the scene, leaving Southwell, who had a large cut on his forehead, and Boucher to be handcuffed and taken to the Grange University Hospital for treatment.

Although initially presenting themselves as victims, CCTV footage revealed both men were the instigators, shown chasing several others while armed with a metal pole in the busy shopping centre.

During his arrest, Southwell became irate and spat at a police constable, who stated: “he does not come to work to be spat at” and “finds it vile and cowardly.”

Southwell received a 6-month prison sentence and was ordered to pay £154. He is already serving a 21-month term for dangerous driving offences.

Boucher was simultaneously sentenced for numerous unrelated burglaries committed between September and October 2024, which involved stealing house keys, car keys, power tools, and car parts from vehicles in Caerphilly. Upon arrest for these offences, he was found with cannabis and became aggressive, kicking one officer and threatening to bite and spit at another.

In Boucher’s defence, Hilary Roberts told the court his client struggled with substance abuse and homelessness following a difficult upbringing “disrupted by domestic abuse and drug misuse” and being “abused while in care.” The court also heard that “whilst building a relationship with his birth dad, his dad was killed in a car crash” and that “his drug taking alienated him from all the potentially good influences in his life.”

Boucher received a 21-month sentence and a £187 surcharge.

Both defendants will serve 40 per cent of their sentences before being released on licence.