DESPITE repeated attempts to obtain information from his local police officers concerning an uninsured motorist who had driven into the back of his vehicle, Owen Williams eventually lost control.

“Yes, I was angry,” he told Llanelli magistrates. “Yes, I did hold the reception button down for a prolonged period on purpose and yes, I did call the police officer ignorant.

"But if someone phoned me on ten different occasions and I refused to give them an answer, then I’d call myself ignorant as well.”

Mr Williams, 66, of Llanarthney, found himself before Llanelli magistrates facing a charge of using threatening words and behaviour likely to cause harassment following an incident at Ammanford police station on April 4.

Williams, who was unrepresented in court, pleaded guilty to the charge but said it followed several months of anxiety after his car had been hit by an uninsured driver.

“I took his number and reported it to the insurance company but when I discovered that the car that had hit me was uninsured, I knew I was unable to claim," he said.

"I tried to contact the police on numerous occasions to find out what could be done, but they made no attempt to get back to me.”

And so on April 4, Mr Williams visited officers at Ammanford police station.

“I stood at the desk for a minimum of five minutes and the officers behind the screen totally ignored me, even though they knew I was there," he said.

"By now I was really wound up. I went up to the button and held it down on purpose, due to what had happened. It was all because of excessive provocation."

Mr Williams told magistrates that he had received hospital treatment as a result of the anxiety which he’d endured throughout the process.

“But I’m now much more confident in myself and can stand up for myself far better,” he said. “This is why I’m here today, representing myself.”

After listening to Mr Williams’s mitigation, magistrates granted him a conditional discharge for 12 months. He doesn’t have to pay any costs however he must pay a £22 surcharge.