• Dylan Thomas, 24, was accused of stabbing to death his friend William Bush, 23, in a “frantic attack” on December 24, 2023, a court in Wales heard.
• The suspect is believed to be the heir to the multi-million dollar company Peter’s Savory Products.
• Thomas had previously pleaded guilty to manslaughter, but denies murder.

The heir apparent to a $291 million fortune has been accused of killing his friend in a “frenzied attack.”

On Wednesday, November 13, Dylan Thomas, 24, appeared at Cardiff Crown Court, UK, via video link from a psychiatric hospital. He was accused of stabbing his friend William Bush23 years old, died on December 24, 2023 at their home in Llandaff, according to the BBC and British newspapers The times And The Independent,

According to The telegraphTHE BBC And The timesThomas is the heir to the multi-million dollar pie company Peter’s Savory Products. He would be the grandson of the company’s former co-owner, Sir Stanley Thomas, the latter reported.

Thomas had previously pleaded guilty to manslaughter, but denies murder. News from the skythe BBC and The Independent declared.

By The timesBush was about to leave the home he shared with Thomas to live with his girlfriend, Ella Jeffries, at the time of the attack.

Prosecuting attorney Greg Bull described the victim as “a quiet, passive man who avoided confrontation,” the outlet said.

“Dylan Thomas was a loner and his only real friend was Will,” Bull said of the suspect, according to the publication. The two men met at school.

The court heard that on December 23, Thomas went to live with his grandmother, Sharon Burton, in Rhoose, Vale of Glamorgan, while Bush went to spend the evening with Jeffries before spending Christmas with his family in Brecon, in central Wales. reported the BBC.

Just after midnight on Christmas Eve, Bull said the suspect searched for “neck anatomy” on his computer, before texting Bush and telling him he needed to see it before the holiday, the BBC added.

After trying and failing to book an Uber at 3:31 a.m. local time, his grandmother drove him home later that morning after he “said he wanted to walk the dog.” She parked outside the house, while Thomas entered and allegedly stabbed Bush 37 times, the BBC reported.

Thomas had “armed himself with a large kitchen knife and a black knife or a folding knife”. The Independent said of the attack, saying Bush tried to “run for his life” when Thomas first stabbed him in the neck from behind.

Bull said: “It is clear that Dylan Thomas used the kitchen knife to stab Mr. Bush in the chest and slit his throat, severing the main artery in his neck, as a result of which Mr. Bush bled to death », According to the media.

The times reported that 21 of the injuries Bush suffered were to the neck in “seven horrifying minutes.”

During the trial, Burton administered CPR to Bush on the terrace outside the property after Thomas knocked “on the window of his distressed car”, the BBC reported. According to the outlet, Thomas called 999 (the British version of 911) and accused Bush of stabbing him.

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After the attack, Thomas told police he stabbed Bush in self-defense, saying the victim was “having a seizure,” according to The Independent.

The outlet added that the prosecution admitted the suspect suffered from “mental illness” and suffered from psychosis before the stabbing.

“After the murder, his condition worsened, as a result of which he was treated for schizophrenia in the hospital,” Bull said, according to the media outlet, but argued that the suspect intended to carry out this “frantic attack”.

The court also heard that two months before the alleged attack, Bush had “barricaded himself in his bedroom” after Thomas allegedly mentioned killing him, The times declared.

“From October to November 2023, Mr. Bush told Ella that there was an occasion when Mr. Thomas said to Mr. Bush: ‘I thought or wondered about killing you.’ ” Bull told the court, according to the outlet.

“These remarks were taken seriously by Mr. Bush who told Ella that that night he had barricaded his bedroom door to prevent Mr. Thomas from entering the bedroom while he was sleeping. He was afraid,” added the prosecutor.

According to Sky News, the trial also heard that on November 6, Thomas was “arrested in London for attempting to climb Buckingham Palace” after attempting to “scale a 14ft fence” outside the royal residence.

The trial continues. Cardiff Crown Court did not immediately respond when contacted by PEOPLE.