Jealous man in poison bid

A former Cannock man who poisoned his pregnant landlady with bleach in her tea because he was in love with her boyfriend has been locked up.

Stephanie Force had a stillborn baby three months after Robert Tonks poured bleach into several of her drinks. The 20-year-old was sentenced to four years in custody.

Ms Force, of Abertillery, South Wales, was in a relationship with Tonks' cousin.

Tonks, formerly of Plantation Road, Pye Green, was also handed an indefinite prison sentence for the rape of a male under the age of 13 and sexual assault of a male under 13 with a minimum sentence of six years.Cardiff Crown Court heard Tonks, who moved to Wales after being victimised by youngsters, started to pour bleach into his landlady's tea when he discovered she was pregnant.

The poisoning went on for a week until Ms Force started to complain of blisters in her mouth.

It was only after the funeral of the baby in May that Tonks admitted to the couple what he had done.

Mr Leighton Hughes, prosecuting, told the court that Tonks told police he wanted a relationship with his cousin Craig Thomas.

He said: "Tonks told the officers he was putting bleach in Stephanie's tea because he wanted her out of the way."

The court heard Tonks told officers: "I just wanted her to choke or get a sore throat or something like that. She might have left him then and I would have been able to start a relationship with Craig."

Mr Hughes told Cardiff Crown Court that Tonks was victimised by neighbours in Cannock.

Tonks was convicted of poisoning with intent to injure. Mr Justice Butterfield ordered Tonks to be a registered sex offender for life and he ordered the sentences to run concurrently.

By Shaun Lintern