Ghostly goings-on force family to move house five times.
Warrior spirit haunts couple.
By George Tattum. Exclusive.
A terrified couple have had their lives torn apart by an evil spirit which has forced them to move house – FIVE times. Cyril and Maureen Hughes have even sought the help of ghostbusters in a bid to exorcise the tormentor from beyond the grave. The spirit is believed to be an ancient warrior who was unleashed when council workmen disturbed an unmarked grave as they laid foundations in the couple’s first home. Since then they have been plagued by strange stenches, faces at their windows, pictures and ornaments moving on their own, and shouting and knocking in the dead of night.
“We have tried everything, but we are still being menaced,” said Maureen, of Princess Avenue, Buckley. “The presence drove us out of Bryn Garmon, Mold, where I had lived for 40 years. We have since lived in Bagillt, Sandycroft and now Buckley, but still we haven’t managed to shake off the presence.” Maureen says spooky goings-on in their home in Bryn Garmon got so hair-raising that they were forced to move out, with Cyril so unnerved he slept in a car, while Maureen sought refuge in a caravan on the drive.
“The house was definitely haunted, with ornaments moving of their own accord during the night and unexplained smells wafting through the house,” she revealed. “Cyril saw a skull by the door which then vanished into thin air.” Maureen believes the spirit was released from an unmarked grave when council workmen started laying the foundations for a downstairs bathroom at their council home in Bryn Garmon five years ago. “A clairvoyant said it was probably the spirit of a warrior killed during a battle around Bailey Hill centuries ago,” she said. “We taped eerie voices in the house during one night-time investigation, but on advice buried the recordings in the garden in case the spirit followed us to our new home.”
After a short spell free of the evil presence – when the tortured couple lodged with relatives in Buckley – the haunting started again as soon as they moved to a bungalow in Greenfield. The couple’s grandson Thomas started seeing faces in the window and there were nerve-tingling knocking sounds. “We then moved to rented accommodation in Sandycroft, but even there the pictures started moving of their own accord on the walls of the new place and again there was a terrible smell,” said Maureen. “We moved out and went to stay with family, but when we got this bungalow in Princess Avenue, things started to happen again. There is a strong smell of cigar smoke in the house and Cyril has heard someone shouting his name in the middle of the night.”
Maureen is convinced the evil spirit is following them from place to place, determined to wreck their lives. “It’s a frightening experience we are just having to live with. I just don’t know where it’s going to end,” she added.
Clairvoyant Elaine McGill, who runs classes at Mold’s Daniel Owen Centre, is to offer Cyril and Maureen help in trying to exorcise the spirit. “I met them before and believe what they are experiencing is quite genuine,” she said.
Flint and Holywell Chronicle, 2nd February 2001.
Apology to Hughes family.
Last week’s Chronicle carried a story about a family being forced out of several homes due to them being haunted. The story was accompanied by a picture which had been digitally enhanced to illustrate the tale, but which caused distress to Cyril and Maureen Hughes, the couple involved. This was not our intention and we apologise for any distress this caused.
Flint and Holywell Chronicle, 9th February 2001.