Owner of North Wales recycling plant jailed after employee died in baling machine

The owner of a North Wales recycling plant has been jailed after one of his employees died in a baling machine.

After a two week trial at Mold Crown Court, 60-year-old Stephen Jones of Rhos on Sea was found guilty of gross negligence manslaughter.

It followed the death of his employee Norman Butler (pictured above) in November 2017.

He and his company were also found guilty of contravening Health and Safety regulations.

Today, he was sentenced to nine years in prison and disqualified from being a company director for the same length of time. Recycle Cymru Ltd were also fined £120,000.

Mr Butler (60), from Prestatyn was found in the compaction chamber of a cardboard baling machine at the Recycle Cymru recycling plant in Kinmel Bay in November 2017.

Today, his family paid tribute to him, saying: “As a family, we are all pleased with the decision made by the jury, and we would like to say thank you to the prosecution team for all the work they have done for this trial.

“This trial has been such a harrowing experience for all of our family, which we will never forget and which will stay with us forever.

“After listening to the lies told by Mr Jones to the Health and Safety Inspector and all of the shocking and bad decisions he made concerning health and safety which could have been avoidable, Norman would still be with us now.

“In our opinion Mr Jones put all his employees at risk, sadly for our family it was Norman who lost his life.

“Norman was taken away from us too soon, a person who went to work thinking he was safe but never arrived back home.

“Norman is truly missed by the whole family, we have lost a father, son, brother and grandad.

“Norman constantly made us laugh and was a great father to his children and grandad to his grandchildren, he was a man who would do anything to help anybody at any time.

“We all hope that we can now have some closure from this, and after waiting almost five years, we are glad it has now come to an end.

“We know it will not bring Norman back but hope that lessons are learnt and this does not happen to anyone else, and that a family does not lose a loved one in such tragic circumstances again.’

Speaking after sentencing, Detective Chief Inspector Simon Kneale of North Wales Police said: “On behalf of North Wales Police and the officer in the case DC Humphreys I would like to extend my deepest sympathy to Norman’s family and commend them for the patience and dignity that they have shown through this upsetting investigation and trial.

“Our thoughts and sympathies remain with them knowing that they have to live with the dreadful consequences of what happened at Recycle Cymru Ltd.

“This was a complex and distressing case, which sadly saw a man lose his life through a totally avoidable set of circumstances.

“Employers have legal responsibilities to ensure the safety of their employees, and in this case, the jury heard that safety procedures at Recycle Cymru were “shockingly bad” and were a significant factor in the death of Mr Butler.

“I would like to thank the Health and Safety Executive, who we worked with throughout our investigation and also the witnesses that provided valuable evidence during the trial, and whilst I hope today’s verdict will bring Mr Butler’s family some comfort, I am all too aware that it won’t bring their loved one back.

“The verdict and sentence passed by this court reflects the severity of these offences and the lack of remorse shown by Stephen Jones.

“I can only hope that the result of this trial will encourage other company directors to scrutinise their Health and Safety obligations and by doing so reduce the risk of such tragic accidents occurring in any workplace.”

HSE Principal Inspector Emily Osborne said: ‘There was a blatant disregard for the safety of workers on the premises of Recycle Cymru Ltd.

“The scale of the sentence imposed on Stephen Jones underlines just how seriously breaches of the regulations will be dealt with.

“I hope this sends a very clear signal to other companies that the regulations, which are there to keep workers safe, must be followed for the good of everyone.

“Our sympathies go out to the family of Mr Butler who now have to live with the dreadful consequences of what happened at Recycle Cymru Ltd.”