Woman murdered with boiling oil in chip shop had feared husband was going to kill her, court hears

Mavis Bran, 69, was seen with a black eye in the weeks prior to her death in October 2018, Swansea Crown court was told

Geoffrey Bran has been cleared of killing his wife at their chip shop in Carmarthenshire, Wales (S4C)

A chip shop owner warned a friend her husband was "going to f****** kill me” before she was allegedly murdered with a deep fat fryer, a court has heard.

Mavis Bran, 69, had been seen with a black eye in the weeks prior to her death in October 2018, Swansea Crown court was told this week.

Ms Bran is said to have told a friend she was frightened as she believed husband Geoffrey Bran was capable of murdering her after rows between the couple.

Mr Bran, 71, is on trial accused of pouring scalding hot cooking oil over his wife at the Chipoteria in Hermon, Carmarthenshire, causing horrific burns that led to her death six days later.

Ms Bran had told witnesses her husband of 38 years had “flipped” and attacked her with a fryer because she was nagging him.

On Wednesday, the court heard from Cerys Davies, a friend of Ms Bran, who said the chip shop owner claimed her husband was being “nasty” to her in the weeks before her death.

Ms Davies said: “She said ‘I am frightened. I think he is going to f****** kill me’.”

She added Ms Bran told her a black eye she had sustained on one occasion was because she had “walked into something”.

Interviews between police and Mr Bran were read out in court in which he denied the pair having a violent relationship.

He claimed his wife was “confused” when accusing him of pouring the oil on her.

Mr Bran also claimed she had drunk “two or three” glasses of red wine and would usually consume more than a bottle every day.

Describing their relationship, he said: “It’s a miracle we lasted that long. But we used to get on OK. We’ve had our ups and downs.

“We were both business-minded. There wasn’t much of a home life.

“It started off romantic but that wears off after years. It was more like a friendship.”

Mr Bran said he believed his wife slipped after berating him about burned fish, and pulled the deep fat fryer containing oil heated to around 160C on top of herself.

But pathologist Deryk James had earlier told the court that if Ms Bran had indeed done so, he would have expected to find burns on the inside of her fingers.

He said: “She has not gripped something that is very hot.”

Ms Bran died in Morriston Hospital in Swansea six days after the alleged attack on October 23 last year.

Mr Bran, from Hermon, denies murder.

The trial continues.

Additional reporting by PA