After two disruptive hours, the banging ceased as suddenly as it had begun. In court one, chairman of the bench Fred Bevan raised his eyes with relief - and beheld the vision of three prisoners crawling across the roof, having made more productive use of their time in the holding cell than most.
But the fugitives had not reckoned on the razor sharp responses of Glamorgan Gazette journalist Clive Girton, who leapt from the press bench and into his very own exclusive. He vaulted a 4ft wall and rugby tackled one of the prisoners, pinning him down until help arrived.
Girton, a court reporter for over 30 years, said: 'There had been a lot of crashing and banging and by 12.30pm we'd had enough. Then Fred Bevan shouted "There's someone on the roof!" I followed the security guards out... Then one man walked past me, followed by the second. I recognised one as the man remanded in custody in the morning. They ran so I chased after them.
'The prisoners must have cut two holes through the cell wall, gone up a flight of stairs, through a window and on to the roof.'
Another fugitive later last Friday surrendered to police while the third was recaptured in Bridgend.
