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THE TERRIBLE EXECUTION OF CLIFFORD GODFREY WILLS FOR A CASE OF OVERKILL...


31 year old Clifford Wills had served in the army during World War II and after demob in 1945 worked as an electrician but was unemployed in 1948.  

He was having an affair with a 32 year old married woman, Sylvina May Parry who lived with her husband 36 year old John and 14 year old son, Anthony, at 11 Wayfield Crescent in Pontnewdd, a suburb of Cwmbran, South Wales. 

On Tuesday the 8th of June 1948, John Parry had gone off to his job as a furnace man at G.K.N. as usual.  He was on afternoon shift, working 2 p.m. - 10 p.m. and when he got home was surprised to find his wife was not there.  He went for a walk round the village in search of her but returned home without finding any trace.

The following morning he reported her missing to Sgt. Daniel Plummer.  He then went home where he discovered Sylvina’s body hidden under the spare bed in the small box room.  He went and told Sgt. Plummer who then initiated a murder investigation.  A thorough search of the house revealed bloody footprints and palm prints.  

The post mortem examination carried out by the Home Office pathologist, Professor J M Webster, showed that she had been battered with a large spanner, causing 12 separate scalp lacerations, stabbed three times in the chest and suffocated to death by having a coat sleeve forced down her throat.  She also had other more superficial injuries.

Neighbours suggested the name of Clifford Godfrey Wills, whom they had seen at the house, to the police and they went to his home at 3 Cromwell Place, Pontnewdd on the 9th of June where he was sleeping in a blood stained shirt.  The police went to his bedroom, and found him on his bed, he seemed to be in a heavily drugged state.

I’ve taken about 20 Soneryl tablets. I’m fed up with life…I just want to finish myself off.”

He claimed that the blood stains were as a result of having had a fight with one George Logan.  When interviewed Logan denied that anything of the sort had taken place.

Confronted with this, Wills changed his story and claimed that he had attempted suicide. 

Wills was tried at Newport on the 8th and 9th of November 1948, before Mr. Justice Hallett.  He absolutely denied the murder.  The forensic evidence told a different story, including a bloody finger print on Sylvania’s handbag led to a conviction.  The jury deliberated for just over two hours.

Wills did not expect to hang and even told Mr. Justice Hallett so before he was sentenced.  This was because in April 1948 the House of Commons had voted to suspend capital punishment for five years but this was overturned by the House of Lords later that year.  

On the 1st of December the Home Secretary decided to allow “the law to take its course”.  So at 9.00 a.m. on Thursday the 9th of December Wills was hanged at Cardiff by Steve Wade and Henry Critchell. This was Critchell’s last execution, he had assisted at 18 hangings.

In late 2003, the remains of Clifford Wills and the five other executed prisoners (i.e. William Corbett, George Roberts, Howard Grossley, Evan Evans, and Ajit Singh) were exhumed from the prison grounds and reburied elsewhere, so that a new cell block could be constructed on the site.

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