Property developer, 53, set his £100,000 barn conversion on fire then shot himself in the head after rowing with his partner about selling their luxury country home, inquest hears
- Roger Selway, 53, was found dead at home in Ynysybwl, near Pontypridd, in April
- His partner, Ruth Ayres, saw him lying on back after hearing ‘load bang’ of gun
- An inquest at Pontypridd Coroner’s Court heard that he set fire to the home
- The Assistant Coroner concluded today that Mr Selway died by suicide
- For confidential support, call the Samaritans on 116123 or visit a local Samaritans branch. See www.samaritans.org for details
A wealthy property developer set his barn conversion on fire then shot himself in the head after a row with his partner, an inquest heard today.
Roger Selway, 53, from Cardiff, was found dead in the barn on Mill Road in Ynysybwl, Pontypridd, by his partner Ruth Ayres after the pair disagreed about putting it up for sale.
Dozens of armed officers stormed the isolated beauty spot after the shooting when neighbours saw smoke coming from the country home.
An inquest held at Pontypridd Coroner’s Court today heard that Mr Selway was found following a house fire, and was discovered with a shotgun wound to his face.
Roger Selway, 53, was found dead in a barn conversion on Mill Road in Ynysybwl, Pontypridd
His partner, Ruth Ayres, described seeing Mr Selway walking upstairs holding some sort of lighter. She said she started to smell something like petrol before the upstairs was engulfed in flames. Above, the Mill Road home
South Wales Fire and Rescue Service attended the address due to the amount of smoke coming from the roof. The property (above) had to be deemed safe before some emergency service responders could enter
The incident took place back last year after pictures emerged of a property engulfed in flames.
At the time, officers from South Wales Police said they were called to the barn at 7.30am on Tuesday, April 27, last year, following a report of a sudden death and a house fire.
Reading evidence at the inquest today, Assistant Coroner David Regan said statements described Mr Selway being found after he ‘shot himself in the face’.
Evidence provided by pathologist, Dr John Williams, showed Mr Selway’s injuries were in keeping with this and his medical cause of death was provided as a ‘shotgun injury to the head’.
The hearing was told Mr Selway had been arguing with his partner, Ruth Ayres, for a week or so leading up to his death.
It was said the couple, who had been together for six years, had a disagreement as to whether or not they’d sell the barn.
In a statement provided to the court Ms Ayres described what the atmosphere was like on the day before his death.
She said: ‘Roger went to work as normal. Roger telephoned me during the day because a skip company had apparently taken too much money from his account.’
Ms Ayres also said that he told her an estate agent would be stopping by at around 3pm to look at the barn, but she told him she couldn’t attend to them at the time.
The statement continued: ‘Roger came home at around 5pm and seemed absolutely fine. We talked normally.’
Later in the evening she said they had a disagreement about messages he had received from ‘two other females’.
At around 6am the next day, Ms Ayres said she woke up and later took her daughter to Pontypridd train station to catch the train to go to school. She arrived back at the property at around 7.30am.
The hearing was told Mr Selway, who was born in Cardiff, was home when she returned.
She said: ‘I told him I had nothing to say to him. I told him I was not selling the barn, and said go to his mother’s house.’
Moments later Ms Ayres described seeing Mr Selway walking upstairs, and said he was holding what looked like some sort of lighter and something that was long and plastic.
She said she started to smell something like petrol, so she decided to call the police.
Forensic officers at the scene of the tragedy in Ynysybwl, Pontypridd, South Wales last year
Mr Selway’s death was not treated as suspicious by officers investigating at the time
‘I was absolutely terrified at this moment, so I ran outside the house,’ the statement continued. ‘I heard a loud bang, and I remember thinking “Roger must have fallen”.
‘I could see Roger lying on his back. I saw straight away that Roger had shot his face.’
The inquest was told Ms Ayres was told to leave the property and stay with a neighbour until emergency services arrived at scene.
Ms Ayres also told the coroner that her former partner had ‘a lot of stresses and worries’ before he died.
She said: ‘He had been diagnosed with cancer twice in the last two years. He was diagnosed with melanoma in March 2020. He had lots of stress at work and Covid happened.’
The inquest was told Mr Selway had never previously expressed any suicidal thoughts, and had never used drugs or consumed high levels of alcohol.
It was also said he was never known to be violent, and that Mr Selway had previously ‘seemed happy’.
Evidence presented at the hearing said the barn had a gun room. Mr Selway would shoot together with his brother, but he was never known to have held a shotgun.
When Ms Ayres raised the alarm to the emergency services, she is reported to have said: ‘He has shot himself. He has shot himself, and set fire to the house.’
The death took place in the former mining village of Ynysybwl, near Pontypridd, south Wales
A shotgun was found beside Mr Selway, but the property had to be deemed safe before some emergency service responders could enter.
South Wales Fire and Rescue Service attended the address due to the amount of smoke coming from the roof.
In his evidence provided to the court, paramedic Jamie Shaw said there was a ‘strong smell of petrol’ at the property.
He said: ‘We could see the deceased on the top of the steps. He had injuries incompatible with life. We left the property through the kitchen area as it was deemed safe.’
Concluding the hearing, Assistant Coroner Regan said: ‘The upstairs of the property was on fire. It’s likely the fire was started by Mr Selway.
‘In these circumstances I’m satisfied that he intended to end his life on the day that he died, so it’s therefore appropriate for me to reach a conclusion that he died as a result of suicide, and that is my finding.’
For confidential support, call the Samaritans on 116123 or visit a local Samaritans branch. See www.samaritans.org for details.
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