THE owners and operators of a Flintshire plant where a man died are to face prosecution.

Ex-soldier Austin Thomas was killed when he was hit by a bucket loader at the UPM papermill in Shotton on February 6, 2017.

But it was revealed at a pre-inquest hearing in Ruthin that his colleague, Darren Wright, who was driving the Volvo loader and who was arrested after the incident, would not be charged.

The Leader:

Ex-soldier Austin Thomas was killed after incident at the UPM papermill in Shotton

Mr Thomas, 29, of Gardeners Row, Oakenholt, Flint, was employed by Downton Haulage which is contracted to provide warehouse services at the mill.

A former pupil of Ysgol Maes Garmon in Mold, the father-of-one joined the army at 17 and served with the 1st Battalion Welsh Guards in Kosovo and Afghanistan.

A post-mortem examination revealed the cause of his death as crush injuries.

At the pre-hearing Joanne Lees, assistant coroner for North Wales East and Central, said she had been informed by the Health and Safety Executive, whose staff conducted an investigation into the incident, that Mr Wright would not be prosecuted.

But Craig Morris, for the HSE, confirmed that both UPM and Downton had been notified that they would be facing charges under the Health and Safety Act, although they had not yet been summonsed.

At the hearing both companies, the HSE and Mr Wright were legally represented and some members of Mr Thomas’s family were also present.

Among the matters resolved prior were what documentation should be disclosed, including the driver training records, operators’ manual and logbooks.

The inquest, which is expected to last five days, will be held with a jury and will take place before the criminal cases are heard.

Mrs Lees said: “It seems to me it is going to be a case which the jury will find challenging.”

She said she was anxious for the full inquest to be held before the end of the year, but another pre-hearing would be held in July to resolve more of the issues including which witnesses would be called.