THE elderly lover of a carer accused of manslaughter will take his “grave mistake” to his death after he failed to call 999, a court has heard.

Gywn Price was urged to visit Izabela Dauti’s home on November 15, 2016, after she phoned him in what he described as a “panicked state”.

Jurors at Winchester Crown Court were told today (Thursday) that Mr Price came across retired sergeant major Malcolm Cox laid in Ms Dauti’s hallway face down with blood around his neck and around the hallway.

Mr Price, aged 72, said he then walked into the longue and “there was glass all over the place, the carpet was turned back with two big patches of blood or whatever made dark patches which one would presume was blood.

“[The living room] was covered in glass, there was a bottle over by the radiator.”

Mr Price told jurors he continued to tell Ms Dauti, aged 40, that she should phone the doctors, but he claimed that Ms Dauti repeatedly said: “dirty old man get him [Mr Cox] out”.

According to Mr Price, Ms Dauti was concerned about social services as she has had dealings with them in the past, but Ms Dauti then started to punch Mr Cox in the chest.

“I said she would leave him with bruises on him then she would be in more trouble. All she was interested in was me throwing him out of the house and no way was I going to do that," Mr Price added. 

Mr Price then went to Ms Dauti’s mother’s house and tried to get her to call the doctor before returning to Ms Dauti’s house.

“He [Mr Cox] was holding Izabela from behind, he was still on the ground.”

Mr Price said Ms Dauti had changed and was now in her dressing gown which had patches of blood on it, and then he returned to the accused mother’s house before going home to sleep.

“I was flabbergasted at what was going on,” Mr Price added.

Ms Dauti, of Bell Road, Andover, denies the manslaughter of Mr Cox by failing to call emergency services after the Andover Royal British Legion Member is believed to hit his head on a ceramic plant pot causing a wound.

Defending, Harendra de Silva questioned Mr Price on why he did not call the police, doctors, or an ambulance when he saw Mr Cox bleeding.

Mr Price said: “I knew I should have rung at the time but I didn’t. I feel guilty over not doing it.

“It was a grave mistake."

Mr de Silva said: “You had the opportunity to call a doctor, you had a number of opportunities to call the police and you did nothing."

He added that because Mr Price had been in Northumberland the day before and was tired and instead of calling 999 he went home to sleep.

Mr de Silva suggested that Mr Price’s statement was “pure invention” and was a “pack of lies” and in fact Mr Cox was not at the flat when he arrived.

“Mr Cox arrived with his walking stick and there was dry blood on his nostril. When he came into the living room and when he saw you, you were shouting at him and he was shouting at you,” Mr de Silva said.

“He was pushing his walking stick towards you. You grabbed the end of the stick and he was trying to prod you with it.”

He added that before Mr Price left Ms Dauti’s flat he made a sign like a gun towards the accused and went home.

Mr Price refuted the claims, saying: “I have had enough of it. I am getting slightly confused, this is daunting and you are trying to suggest I’ve done it”.

The court heard that Mr Price and Ms Dauti had met at Control Technics Dynamics, on the Walworth Industrial Estate, and their friendship grew into an intimate relationship, but the witness said Ms Dauti was “was a very expensive woman to run”.

He claimed that on a number occasions the pair went out and Ms Dauti drank alcohol to excess.

“[She was] an embarrassment, at times because she would drink too much alcohol and you would have to pick her up off of the ground.”

The pair broke off their relationship after Mr Price said the defendant began seeing other men, and at one point he claimed that Ms Dauti fought him to leave the house to allow another man to visit.

He added: “She is an alcoholic pain and a violent woman when she has had alcohol or when she was upset over something.”

But the jury were told the pair got back together in 2016, despite Mr Price being married, after an article in this newspaper involving Ms Dauti, and they continued their intimate relationship. 

Mr de Silva suggested that Mr Price enjoyed lavishing Ms Dauti with presents and meals out in return for sexual favours and resented that Mr Cox was now buying the accused groceries and other items. 

But Mr Price said: "I wasn't jealous of Malcolm or anybody because I knew she was fair game for most guys.”

The trial continues