A mural in the Welsh Valleys town of Blaina depicts a young girl clutching a daffodil beneath the words: “A small town with a big Welsh heart”.
The former mining community in Gwent has long been known for its tight-knit spirit. With fewer than 5,000 residents, Blaina is the sort of place where people know one another — and local news spreads quickly.
That close community rallied when 14-year-old Lilly Jones failed to come home on a Saturday evening in June. Neighbours joined the search almost immediately.
Two days later, Lilly’s body was discovered in woodland at Duffryn Park, a nine-acre area featuring sports pitches and nature trails beside the Ebbw Fach river.
Relatives described Lilly as a “beautiful, kind and caring” girl who had an “eclectic taste in music”. She had suffered multiple stab wounds. Days later, a 14-year-old boy was charged with her murder.
The killing has devastated Blaina. As residents mourned one of their own, detectives were also dealing with a much broader crisis across the region.
Police chiefs say the number of killings in Gwent has risen by an “unprecedented” 270 per cent over the past year.
The rural county north-east of Cardiff typically records two or three murders annually. Yet 11 killings were reported during the first 10 months of 2026.
Gwent Police Chief Constable Mark Hobrough said he was concerned that his 1,535 officers could suffer burnout. He also warned that record overtime bills were putting severe pressure on the force’s finances.
Lilly Jones, 14, was found dead in woodland. A 14-year-old boy has been charged with her murder
A mural in the Welsh Valleys town of Blaina depicts a young girl holding a daffodil beneath the words: “A small town with a big Welsh heart”
Mr Hobrough warned that, if the rise in killings continues into next year, he may have to consider cheaper options — including bringing in specialist investigators on temporary “zero-hours type” contracts.
The young age of many of the victims has been among the most disturbing features of the killings.
They included 17-year-old rugby player Tristan Kerr, who was fatally stabbed with a zombie knife in the village of Abertridwr, near Caerphilly, in February.
In Newport, only a short drive away, 19-year-old Jaydon Bowyer died in May alongside his best friend, 16-year-old Ta-Shay Canoville. The pair were thrown from a motorbike in what police suspect was a hit-and-run.
The oldest victim was 74-year-old Brian Parfitt, who died a month earlier after being attacked inside his home in Pontypool, a town of around 30,000 people north of Newport.
Several other deaths occurred in public places.
Tony Jones, a 56-year-old father of two, was killed during a violent brawl in nearby Pontnewynydd on August 7.
Police believe the violence involved two rival motorcycle clubs, the Hells Angels and the Vikings. Witnesses reportedly saw people wielding knives and hammers.
As part of the murder investigation, officers have made 45 arrests and preserved 55 scenes.
Mr Hobrough said the spike in homicides has been accompanied by other horrifying incidents, including the death of a nine-month-old baby in a dog attack.
He said there was no link between the 11 killings and that many stemmed from domestic violence and substance misuse.
Others appear to have been sparked by trivial disputes.
On February 20, Kyle O’Callaghan, 30, punched 37-year-old Marcus Carpenter in the head outside a Wetherspoons because he felt ‘disrespected’.
Both men were in the pub with separate groups of friends when O’Callaghan asked Mr Carpenter to come outside after hearing he ‘had been saying things about him’.
Tony Jones, a 56-year-old father of two, was killed in a vicious brawl on August 7 in nearby Pontnewynydd
The spike in killings has been accompanied by other horrifying incidents, including the death of a nine-month-old baby in a dog attack
MUST READ: My Wife Asked for One Anniversary Gift—Now She Won’t Touch Me
Ta-Shay Canoville, 16, was killed in May alongside his best friend, 19-year-old Jaydon Bowyer, after the pair were thrown from a motorbike in a suspected hit-and-run
After throwing a first punch, O’Callaghan continued trying to argue with Mr Carpenter before landing a second ‘fatal, sickening blow’ while his victim had his arms down by his side, Newport Crown Court heard.
The cowardly killer admitted manslaughter and was jailed for ten-and-a-half years.
While everyone acknowledges the police are under pressure, locals in Blaina criticised the idea of employing investigators on a ‘zero-hours’ basis.
Since Mr Hobrough’s comments to Monmouthshire councillors, Gwent Police has clarified that it does not employ anyone on zero-hours contracts.
The force said any new staff it recruits in would be on short-term temporary contracts, a similar arrangement to agency staff. It said these individuals could assist detectives during ‘future periods of high demand’.
Nonetheless, many in Blaina fear the force is already struggling to cope.
Brian Jones, a 62-year-old retired scaffolder, pointed out that Lilly’s body was found by two boys shortly after officers called off their search at dusk.
Gwent Police were alerted but it was another 12 minutes before officers returned to the scene.
‘We all know the resources aren’t there. We saw that when the young girl went missing and was found dead,’ he said.
On Blaina’s high street, many of the shops are closed and shuttered, while those that have survived tend to be takeaways and Turkish barbers.
A recurring complaint was the shortage of officers on the beat and a dearth of community police stations.
Tristan Kerr, a 17-year-old rugby player, was stabbed to death with a zombie knife in the tiny village of Abertridwr, near Caerphilly, in February
Lilly’s body was found in a patch of woodland in Duffryn Park, a nine-acre expanse of sports pitches and nature trails along the banks of the Ebbw Fach River
On Blaina’s high street, many of the shops are closed and shuttered, while those that have survived are takeaways and Turkish barbers
Retired dementia carer Jonathan Williams, 60, said: ‘It’s all falling apart. Growing up there was a police station and courtroom in every town in the Valleys, but not anymore.
‘This is one of the most poverty-hit areas in the UK.’
Other residents complained of masked gangs of youths riding quad bikes, motorbikes and electric scooters through Blaina and the neighbouring towns of Abertillery, Ebbw Vale and Brynmawr.
Grandmother Angela Thomas, 69, who was walking her dog Tilly along Blaina’s high street, called for a return to traditional policing.
She said: ‘Police officers should start as constables and work their way up.
‘If we need more police officers the Government should put up the money and they should be recruited and trained in the normal way.’
While Gwent has not seen any further murders since the Pontypool brawl in August, residents fear the violence is far from over.
Businesswoman Cara Davies, 43, who runs a street food business in Blaina called Smash’d, said: ‘It’s a frightening place to live and work at the moment.
‘I’ve been close to two murders in the area, Lilly here in Blaina and the biker gang murder in Pontypool where I live.
‘There’s been a big increase in murders and serious crime in Gwent but you don’t see police on the streets.
‘There were plenty here when Lilly died, but after that it went back to normal.’