A young woman who was killed in an apparent cannibal attack died of “sharp force trauma” to her face and neck, a coroner has heard.
Cerys Yemm, 22, was murdered by Matthew Williams, 34, after he lured her back to his room in a hostel in south Wales.
Williams, who had been released from prison just a few weeks before the attack at the Sirhowy Arms in the village of Argoed, near Blackwood, died after a police officer shot him with a Taser.
DS William Davies, who is leading the investigation, told the inquest in Newport: “Police received a 999 emergency call at 1.23am on Thursday 6 November. On arrival officers found the body of a female on the floor of a hotel room.
“She was pronounced dead at the scene by paramedics. In the room with Cerys Yemm was a male identified as Matthew Williams. He was arrested and detained but died a short time later. His death will be the subject of a separate report.”
The inquest heard a postmortem examination on Yemm carried out by Home Office pathologist Richard Jones recorded a provisional cause of death as sharp force trauma to the face and neck. Sharp force trauma injuries are usually wounds caused by any implement having a sharp edge such as a knife or broken glass. Davies, of Gwent police, said the investigations into both deaths were ongoing.
Gwent coroner David Bowen released Yemm’s body so her family can hold a funeral, which is expected to be a private service. None of her family attended the five-minute hearing. Bowen adjourned the inquest until April while the police investigation continues.
Williams and Yemm, who worked for the clothes shop Next, are believed to have met on a night out in Blackwood. Friends have said he invited her back to the hostel where he was staying, promising to get her a taxi home.
After hostel staff heard a woman’s cries, owner Mandy Miles burst into the room. She has said Williams was covered in blood and had black eyes.
Miles said: “I can still see the amount of blood and the stillness of her, there were no signs of life at that point. I said to Matthew: ‘Do you know what you’re doing to that girl?’ He said: ‘That’s no girl.’”
Williams was staying at the hostel, which is used by Caerphilly council to place single homeless men.
A serious further offence review will take place to see if lessons can be learned from the case amid claims that Williams was unable to access the medication he needed to control his paranoid schizophrenia. Questions have been raised over how he was being monitored after being released from prison for a violent offence.
Gwent police are investigating Yemm’s murder while the Independent Police Complaints Commission is looking into the use of the Taser.
