A WOMAN who died in a blaze at her home told a work colleague her fears she would be killed by the man accused of her murder, a court heard yesterday. 

Carl Mills, 28, of no fixed abode, denies killing two women and a baby by setting fire to their house in Tillsland, Coed Eva on September 17, 2012.

Kim Buckley, her 17-year-old daughter Kayleigh, and six-month-old granddaughter Kimberley all died in the fire which took hold at around 3am.

The court heard from Onus Addu, a security guard at the Primark store where Mrs Buckley worked as a cleaner, social workers, a police officer and a former boyfriend of Kayleigh's.

Mr Addu described standing near the shop's dressing room one day when Mrs Buckley was speaking to colleague Cari Harris.

"Kim told me I would have to watch her back because her son-in-law had said he was going to stab her at her place of work," said Mr Addu.

"I told Kim I didn't think he would do that and not to worry."

Defence barrister Patrick Harrington asked Mr Addu whether Mr Mills had come to Primark with Kayleigh and Kim in the past and not caused trouble, to which Mr Addu replied: "Yes."

Carl Gunter, who was Kayleigh's boyfriend for two days while she had split up from Mills, told the court he first met the pair in Cwmbran town centre when he broke up a fight between them.

"I stepped in because I thought he might hit her," he said. "I asked her name afterwards. I saw her again down at the boating lake and around town, she was always with Mills. He was always drunk, he used to threaten me a couple of times, threatening to kill me because I kept interfering every time he and Kayleigh argued."

Mr Harrington said Mr Gunter had fancied Kayleigh and when asked if he was happy Kayleigh had gone back to Mills, Mr Gunter said: "No I wasn't very happy."

He said they texted about once a week, spoke on the phone once a week and via Facebook, and he knew Kayleigh was with Mills.

In a police statement Mr Gunter said Mills had been aggressive towards him, threatened to stab him or beat him up.

When asked by Mr Harrington why he had not mentioned Mills' threats to kill him, Mr Gunter said he had forgot to put it in his statement.

PC Danielle Threader, formerly stationed at Cwmbran police station, told the court how Kim Buckley had reported criminal damage which she said had been committed by Mills at her home on August 28 last year.

PC Threader tried to contact Mills on his mobile phone but he hung up. On September 10 she spoke to Mrs Buckley who said Kayleigh and Mills were staying in a tent in her garden, and although she was not allowing Mills into the house she was speaking to him, and seemed "very laid back and happy with the arrangement."

Following the fire on September 17, PC Threader gave a statement which said Mrs Buckley had been "very dismissive" of Mills and did not approve of her daughter's infatuation with him.

Social worker Helana Ryan, a team manager for the Family Focus and Family Resource teams at Torfaen council, and health visitor Rhian Appleby, described meetings with Kayleigh and Mills during and after Kayleigh's pregnancy.

Mrs Appleby, who visited Kayleigh and Kimberley in her capacity as a health visitor, said she had been in contact with the family before, when Kim's son David died of carbon monoxide poisoning aged 18 months.

She said at a multi-agency meeting on August 22, when it was believed Kimberley may be well enough to leave hospital, there was a consensus between the professional bodies that the most suitable person to look after Kimberley was her grandmother Kim.

"She was strong, always very outgoing and happy despite tragedy in her life," she said.

Kimberley was not well enough to leave until September 17 and in that time there was two planning meetings, attended by Mills.

"Carl didn't make any contribution or ask any questions, there was no eye contact with myself," she said.

Helana Ryan said that after Kayleigh gave birth to baby Kimberley, who had severe health problems, a referral was made by nurses in the special care baby unit who were concerned Kayleigh and Mills seemed "quite immature".

Social services drew up a care plan in which Kim would be Kimberley's main carer, Mills would leave the house and all contact between him and Kimberley would be supervised.

On August 13 Kim told Mrs Ryan she was increasingly concerned Kayleigh would not prioritise the needs of the baby but would put Mills above her.

The following week, Mrs Ryan learned Kim was seeking her daughter's agreement with either a residency order or a special guardianship order, giving Kim greater parental responsibility over Kimberley.

Mrs Ryan said in meetings Mills rarely spoke and was not interested in the baby, only Kayleigh.

"The damage between Carl and Kim was irreparable," she said.