A couple have told how their neighbour terrorised them with petrol bombs and psychological warfare and say they were driven to the brink of suicide after their ‘dream’ life became a living hell.
Richard Burton and Amanda Hutton moved from Surrey to Pembrokeshire, Wales, in 2018 in search of a slower pace of life, and for a year, they found it – spending their days rewilding the land and renovating the property.
But in 2019, they say their lives were disrupted by a seemingly personable couple who had bought 36 acres of land next door.
‘They took us out for a meal and they were very friendly,’ Mr Burton explained.
Shortly after, Mr Burton and Ms Hutton bought five acres of land from their new neighbours – Cassie and Francis Collins – for £25,000.
Mr Collins took the money but refused to give them access to the land and a lawsuit was filed to force completion, triggering the ex-paratrooper to start a barrage of terror against his neighbours.
‘We felt groomed in a way, it was all orchestrated,’ Mr Burton added. ‘It was as much as we could afford to give, at that point – we were debt-free with no mortgage, living the dream.’
But the clash between the neighbours would become so toxic that it would result in a prison sentence and the tragic deaths on Mr and Mrs Collins, who took their own lives in a suicide pact.
Mr Collins (pictured) would stand at his neighbour’s fence in a balaclava shouting and regularly walk around with a cross bow
Richard Burton (pictured) and Amanda Hutton moved from Surrey to Pembrokeshire, Wales, in 2018 in search of a slower pace of life
Mr Collins sent the couple more than 50 malicious emails, they had an intense psychological impact on Ms Hutton (pictured) and drove her to the brink of suicide twice
The couple found bullet holes in the windows of a bus on their property – which they lived in while their home was being renovated (pictured)
During the campaign of abuse, Mr Collins sent the couple more than 50 malicious emails, threatening to set their home on fire, contacting Amanda’s ex-husband and even threatening their daughter.
In one email, he wrote: ‘You will lose everything you love and I will make you watch.’
Another said: ‘You’re about to have the worst week of you life, lol, I’m so excited. You’re facing bankruptcy, and worse. And you don’t even know why yet, lmao. Ya lost.’
In other emails, he threatened to ‘set’ Ms Hutton on fire, kill Mr Burton and even tried to encourage Ms Hutton to kill her partner.
The emails had an intense psychological impact on Ms Hutton and drove her to the brink of suicide twice – and following her second attempt, she was found hyperthermic after eight hours.
Mr Burton said: ‘Amanda lived in fear every day of a phone call that something would happen to one of our daughters.
‘He ruined our lives. We contemplated leaving but he made our property worthless, it was a warzone. We were trapped.
‘If your neighbours are at your fence every day shouting, shining torches into your bedroom during the night, we couldn’t have sold it without disclosing it to the estate agents – he made our house worthless.
‘They terrorised us pretty much the whole year – every minute of every day you wondered what was going to happen next.’
On September 11, 2021, Mr and Mrs Collins (pictured) were found dead in their home after killing themselves in a suicide pact
Mr Burton and Ms Hutton were terrorised by their neighbour, who threw a petrol bomb at their property (pictured)
The police provided the couple with resources to help protect them, including window locks, door stoppers, constant policing and helicopter patrols.
But Mr Collins would continuously make formal complaints against specific police officers, preventing them from entering the area and protecting Mr Burton and Ms Hutton.
In March 2020, he even threw a petrol bomb into their home – a crime he was later jailed for.
Mr Burton said: ‘He would walk around with crossbows, he’d wear balaclavas, he’d stand at the fence just staring at Amanda – you couldn’t come out the shower without worrying he was filming us.
‘We had fire bombs, window shots through, death threats and police hadn’t caught him and the only way we thought we could stay safe was to buy his land.’
After a 12-hour mediation the neighbours came to an agreement – giving Mr Burton and Ms Hutton six months to buy the land.
They were forced to take a £9,000 emergency bridging loan, paid £29,000 in legal fees and took a mortgage on the land for £220,000 – all with the hope of protecting themselves.
‘We were forced to buy the land for our safety,’ Mr Burton said.
Mr Collins was eventually arrested and a restraining order was placed against him.
The armed forces veteran was said to have been diagnosed with adult attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) while living in the US and had a long history of depression and anxiety. He had previously made an attempt to end his life.
He was assessed by NHS therapists in May 2021 and found to have severe psychotic depression with daily suicidal thoughts and was urgently referred to the NHS mental health team, an inquest into his death heard in 2023.
Mr Collins told them how when he was 10, his father ended his life.
He was noted to be suffering from ongoing back pain, financial stress and was worried about the ongoing police investigation. He was put under the care of the community mental health team and was awaiting an ADHD assessment.
Meanwhile Mrs Collins was said to have endured many years living in chronic pain due to knee and shoulder injuries that left her unable to work and often bedbound.
A bus on Mr Burton and Ms Hutton’s property (pictured) – the couple have remained in Pembrokeshire, rewilding the land
Mr Collins would continuously make formal complaints against specific police officers preventing them from entering the area and protecting Mr Burton and Ms Hutton
On September 11, 2021, Mr and Mrs Collins were found dead in their home after killing themselves in a suicide pact.
An inquest heard that the couple were ‘joined at the hip’ but following the launch of a new police investigation against Mr Collins, they were said to have been worried that everything could be taken from them.
In the lead-up to their deaths, the couple had carried out a number of pre-planned actions, including creating a joint will, sending letters and emails, and having two of their dogs put to sleep, the hearing was told.
In a statement read out during the inquest, Mrs Collins’s sister Jodie said the pair had both spoken in the past of wanting to end their lives.
She then received a letter through the post from her sister on September 11, 2021, in which she apologised for being unable to cope with the pain she was in anymore.
Mrs Collins was discovered lifeless in her bed cuddling three of their dogs – a chihuahua and two miniature pinschers – who were also deceased. Mr Collins was found passed away in the hallway.
The police called Mr Burton that day to inform him of the death.
He said: ‘There was disbelief. I had to phone back to check it wasn’t a hoax phone call and they confirmed it.
‘I felt relief and sadness – we both hit the floor crying.’
The couple have now set up a fundraiser to help protect their rewilding project here and have also remained in Pembrokeshire, rewilding the land.