The owner of a B&B where a woman was brutally murdered has spoken of her shock at discovering former residents included killers, sex offenders and paedophiles.
The Sirhowy Arms in Bargoed, south Wales, became infamous after Cerys Yemm was killed at the 13-bedroom guesthouse last November.
Matthew Williams, who had been put up in the hostel by Caerphilly Council just after being released from prison, was seen chewing on the 22-year-old's face during his attack. He died after being tasered by police.
Sirhowy Arms owner Mandy Miles had no idea of killer Matthew Williams' past or that she had housed other dangerous criminals
In an interview with BBC programme Week In Week Out, which will be broadcast tonight, the B&B's owner Mandy Miles said she had no idea of Williams' violent past or that she had housed other dangerous offenders in the past.
She said: “I never thought for a single minute that I would be in danger or that anyone else would be in danger. I would never have let them through the door.”
Before Yemm's death, the Sirhowy Arms had been used by the council since 2008 to temporarily house homeless adults and a number of vulnerable teenagers – including care leavers.
Mrs Miles said she was happy to accept people who had previously been to prison as well as those with alcohol, drug and mental issues – but believed they were not dangerous.
Cerys Yemm was killed by former inmate Matthew Williams at the hostel in November 2014
However, following Yemm's killing a Freedom of Information Act request revealed that the council had referred 10 sexual and violent offenders who had been homeless.
Mrs Miles said she had since cross-matched her records with local news reports on a number of convicts including a rapist, a peeping Tom and several paedophiles.
She told the programme: “I did not open that door and this guy walks to me and goes, ‘Hello Mandy, the council sent me, I’m a sex offender’. That did not happen. I had to Google to find out what they’d done. That annoyed me.”
The programme also found that in the last five years, Welsh councils sent 755 homeless 16 and 17 year olds to stay in B&Bs because there was nowhere else for them to go.
In England, councils have been told to stop sending 16 and 17 year olds to B&Bs as they are deemed inappropriate. But in Wales, councils can leave them there for up to six weeks at a time while alternatives are sought.
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Cannibal Killer Victim Cerys Yemm
Caerphilly Council refused to be interviewed for the programme but said it considered risk assessments from police and the probation service before sending ex-offenders to stay in temporary accommodation.
It added that while it told Mrs Miles if clients were ex-offenders, it did not give her details about the reason why they had been to jail.
Yemm's mother Paula told the programme she is still searching for answers over her daughter's "unimaginable" death
Week In Week Out also spoke to Miss Yemm's mother Paula, who said she was still seeking answers into her daughter's death.
She said: "Most mornings I wake up and for a split second you think ... it is so unimaginable ... that it hasn't happened. It doesn't happen to people like us, it doesn't happen to Cerys. That feeling comes every morning."
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'Cannibal' Victim Cerys Yemm Suffered Serious Neck & Facial Injuries, Inquest Hears
Cerys Marie Yemm Named As Victim Of Cannibal Matthew Williams
Cannibal Matthew Williams 'Ate Woman's Face' In Wales Hostel
Mrs Yemm said she had also been haunted by some media coverage in the wake of her daughter's death.
She said: “I've seen horrific headlines ... you go to bed at night and things are flashing through your mind."
“I still know nothing ... as much as I know how difficult ... knowing that information would be, I need to know.
“Who made the decisions to place him there and what risk assessments were completed? What went wrong?”