AN ABERDYFI pensioner has spoken out about his nightmare ordeal after he was wrongly accused of shoplifting following a spell of confusion.

James Edward Terry, 69, had been accused of stealing £336 worth of groceries from the Co-operative supermarket in Tywyn last year, a charge he fervently denied.

When Mr Terry attended Dolgellau Magistrates Court on 28 January, the case against him was dismissed.

The pensioner, who suffers from Parkinson’s Disease and Diabetes, takes 19 tablets a day to keep his health in check and had been shopping in the Meirionnydd store when he “had a bit of a turn”.

Heading outside for some fresh air, Mr Terry stood just outside the shop’s doorway with his groceries for “four or five minutes”.

The 69-year-old believed he had lost some money that he had been carrying and was using the store’s ATM when he was surrounded by several store employees who accused him of shoplifting.

Unwell and bewildered by events, the pensioner was subsequently arrested and driven to Dolgellau Police Station where he spent five hours being processed.

Weeks laters, the charge was thrown out when magistrates accepted that Mr Terry had simply been unwell at the time.

“I’m not 21 anymore, I’m 69, you would have thought the store employees would have taken that into account,” Mr Terry told the Cambrian News.

“It was extremely frustrating and upsetting for me,” he added.

“I’ve gone more than two months with people looking at me and judging me.

“I hope next time that staff show some consideration and compassion, it’s a horrible experience to go through for anybody.”

See the full story in this week’s Meirionnydd edition