A man left his friend to rot for weeks on a mattress after he died in his flat, with maggots feeding on the decaying body, a court has heard.
Jamie Russell did not tell anyone about Mathew Scott passing away in his flat, while police and loved ones hunted for him.
When maggots started dropping from the ceiling of the shop below the flat, police eventually entered the property and found Mr Scott's body in a bedroom.
A judge sentencing the defendant to prison said Mr Scott's disappearance had left his family not knowing what had happened to their loved one, and he was not given the dignity in death he deserved, reports Wales Online.
Sian Cutter, prosecuting, told Swansea Crown Court that Mr Scott was reported missing on June 9 last year. Police began investigating using CCTV and found the 42-year-old had left his flat on June 4 but couldn't be traced after that, and he was not in hospital.
Officers spoke to a man who knows Mr Scott, and he reported seeing the deceased near the flats on Windsor Road in Neath town, above a William Hill bookmakers, which he believed was sometime around June 7 to June 9.
On June 28, officers went to the bookmakers, where staff said they were having problems with maggots coming through the ceiling, which pest control told them was from the flat above.
There were flies around the door frame when police began trying to force entry. Russell, 45, then let them in after initially ignoring the door. When they entered, there was "a very strong smell". Candles and a rolled up t-shirt were placed outside the bedroom door.
Police found the body of Mr Scott laying on a mattress and covered in a blanket. He was identified by tattoos, and still had on the same clothes he was wearing when last seen on CCTV.
Russell told officers he and Mr Scott had taken heroin, after which Mr Scott said he was tired. The defendant covered Mr Scott with a blanket and left him, later finding him unresponsive. He tried to give him CPR and administered Naloxone spray, used to reverse the effects of opiates.
A cause of death couldn't be determined but there were no significant injuries to Mr Scott's body. The prosecution said tests on fly larvae on the body allowed examiners to determine he died sometime between June 7 and June 10.
The court was told further CCTV analysis showed Russell coming and going from the flat up until the day he was arrested, apparently going about his "daily business" as normal.
Russell gave a prepared statement to police in which he said he had known Mr Scott for around 10 years. He said he panicked when he found his friend's body after consuming drugs, and had slept little since.
Mr Scott's partner, the mother of his two sons, said in an impact statement that the three were left devastated by his death. They described their heartache at not properly being able to say goodbye or see his body, after they were advised not to do so as it had severely decomposed.
They also said they had a number of unanswered questions about his death and could not understand why Russell left him rather than seeking help, leaving them with the anguish of looking for Mr Scott.
Russell, now of St John's Terrace, Neath Abbey, Neath, had previously pleaded guilty to preventing a decent and lawful burial when he appeared in the dock for sentencing. He has two previous convictions for four offences of theft.
John Allchurch defending said Russell "stuck his head in the sand" after the death, but he accepted he had done nothing to aid the recovery of the body. He said his client was devastated at what happened, he felt sadness and grief at losing a friend, and he specifically asked to apologise to Mr Scott's family in court.
The lawyer said reports indicated Russell had mental health issues and had been homeless for periods of his life, and that he was now engaging with authorities.
Judge Huw Rees said it had to be made clear that the court was sentencing the defendant not for the death of Mr Scott but for preventing a decent burial. He said because of Russell's inactions the family of Mr Scott had been left not knowing what had happened to their loved one, while Mr Scott himself had not received the dignity he deserved in death.
He sentenced Russell to two years in prison. He will serve up to half that period in custody before being released on licence to serve the remainder in the community.
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