Horse racing trainer Evan Williams is headed to prison for three years.
With the sentence, being handed down on Tuesday morning at Cardiff Crown Court, following his conviction last month for causing grievous bodily harm with intent – a violent outburst triggered by a case of mistaken identity.
Evan Williams Attack Happened In December 2024
Back in December 2024, Williams attacked 72-year-old Martin Dandridge, under the false impression that the older man was a “lamper” (a type of poacher).
The assault was brutal enough to leave Dandridge with a broken arm.
Recorder Angharad Price didn’t pull any punches during sentencing.
“This was an appalling offence, causing serious injury,” she told Williams.
Adding firmly that “it is never acceptable to take the law into your own hands.”
Beyond the prison time, Williams’ livelihood as a horse racing trainer is now hanging by a thread.
Future Of Evan Williams Yard ‘Looks Grim’
His barrister, David Elias KC, made it clear that the future of Williams’ training business is grim:
“If he isn’t there, there is no business.”
While the training licence was moved into his wife Cath’s name after the conviction, Elias was blunt about the reality of that arrangement.
During the Evan Williams sentencing, Elias argued that the name on the paperwork didn’t actually matter, stating -“It is Evan Williams who brings the racing knowledge and no one else.”
With the yard also having a Cheltenham Festival winner during this time when Ask Brewster won the Kim Muir Handicap Chase.
Plus that horse is also one of the expected Scottish Grand National runners for this Saturday’s Ayr race.
And priced at 10/1 to give the Williams yard their first success in the race.
Evan Williams Has Received Support Via Testimonials
In a final push for a suspended sentence, Elias pointed to a staggering wave of support for the trainer.
He described an “unprecedented number of testimonials”.
Noting that 570 character references had flooded into the firm’s solicitors.
Of those, 102 were submitted to the court for the judge to review before the hearing.
In the end, however, the sheer volume of support wasn’t enough to keep Williams out of prison.
