Ex-Royal soldier’s ‘chilling threats’ to his boss

Aug 1 2010 by Alastair Craig, Sunday Sun

AN EX-SOLDIER who once protected the Royal family made chilling threats to “ambush and murder” his boss and torch the museum where he worked, a tribunal was told.

John Wynn served in the elite Black Watch regiment before leaving the armed forces on medical grounds and securing a post at the North East Aircraft Museum.

During his time in the world-famous unit, Mr Wynn was placed on protection duty for Princes William and Harry, as well as the newly-elected Prime Minister, Tony Blair, during the hand-over of Hong Kong to China in 1997.

But after 10 years’ service - including tours in war-torn Kosovo, Bosnia and Sierra Leone - he left the army due to tinnitus and was later diagnosed with stress and depression.

Through the Royal British Legion Poppy Factory’s re-employment scheme for ex-servicemen, Mr Wynn landed a job as reception manager at the museum in Sunderland, in October 2008.

But a year later he began to have “dark and depressive” episodes during a bitter dispute with his boss, museum superintendent William Fulton, the employment tribunal, on Newcastle Quayside, was told.

Mr Wynn, a dad-of-one from Hougton-le-Spring, is claiming damages against the museum for unfair dismissal, after denying the threat claims and insisting employment law was not followed during his sacking for gross misconduct.

He also told the hearing that Mr Fulton would “belittle and undermine him”, leading to tension between the pair.

The venue’s project manager Paul Hughes claims he was called 37 times by Mr Wynn over the Christmas period last year, which included detailed death threats against Mr Fulton and a vow to reduce the museum’s aircraft exhibits to ashes.

Mr Hughes said: “Knowing Mr Wynn’s army background I believed he was capable of carrying the threats out. This was not just letting off steam, the threats got more and more detailed

“Over the Christmas period in 2009 I received 37 phone calls to my home from Mr Wynn, when he told me how he was going to murder Mr Fulton and burn the museum.”