WARNING: GRAPHIC CONTENT – Shane Berry downed nine pints and then barged into Mark Taylor’s home carrying weapons in a horrific culmination of an ongoing dispute between neighbours
A thug launched a brutal invasion of his next door neighbour’s home armed with a large knife and metal scaffolding pole.
Shane Berry, 53, had knocked back nine pints of beer before launching a furious assault on Mark Taylor. He brazenly entered the house in Exminster, Devon during the day and carried out the unprovoked beating.
The assailant ignored the petrified screams and pleas of the victim’s terrified wife, who thought her husband was going to be killed. Mark needed 24 staples in his head after being hit repeatedly by the pole and further 15 stitches in his hand from defending himself against the blade.
Berry was sentenced to six years in prison at Exeter Crown Court last week for inflicting grievous bodily harm with intent. The court was told the background to the case was an ongoing neighbour dispute for years between two houses on a quiet street.
Mark has since spoken to DevonLive and said that a claim made by Berry’s barrister in court that his mum had been threatened was simply not true. He hadn’t even spoken to his aggressive neighbour for nearly two years and had extra security fitted after Berry allegedly made a previous violent threat to his wife.
“We were not the instigators of this incident at all,” said Mark. “We had zero contact for nearly two years and never made threats to either of them.”
He said the root of a problem was a series of petty disputes about boundary fencing, spotlights, planning permission for a shed and CCTV, which triggered Berry’s unpredictable, simmering temper. “It was lots of petty things that never should have got this far,” said Mark.
“We offered to do mediation but were told Shane would lose his temper. We did everything to pacify the situation.”
Mark and his wife moved into their house in December 2019. Berry moved into his mum’s house next door. Tensions began in 2023 when Mark was told he could not put a shed in his garden without planning permission.
A few weeks later, Berry built a shed of his own, apparently without permission, and Mark questioned why it had been allowed. Berry’s dislike of his neighbours seems to have grown from this point.
When Mark fixed a brace to stop the boundary fence falling over, Berry ripped it from the ground. Complaints were raised about CCTV and a bright spotlight installed by Berry which “lit everything up like a football stadium”, said Mark.
Even the colour of cable ties, which Mark used to secure lights on the fence, could set his neighbours off, the victim said. “Two of them were black and one was white and I was told it looked untidy,” he added.
Mark claimed Berry threatened to punch and seriously harm his wife during one aggressive rant. Teign Housing, who own both properties, attempted to calm the neighbour dispute.
The two households signed a voluntary agreement not to take part in anti-social behaviour. Mark said: “We agreed to have zero contact. Threats have never been made to Shane Berry or his mother either by me or my wife. In effect in the last two years we’ve had zero contact with them.
“The judge said it was a battleground but it has never been a battleground. We were told to be careful of him when he’s drunk but never expected anything like this.”
At about 6pm on July 11, Berry exploded in a violent rage. He later told police he drunk eight or nine pints. Mark said the first he knew of any trouble was shouting from outside while he was sat in the living room.
Berry burst in and attacked him with the weapons. Footage played in court shows him entering the neighbour’s house. Mark’s wife can be heard screaming for him to get out.
The thug’s final words to his mum as he came over the fence and barged into the house were allegedly: “I’m going to kill those f***** two fat c****”.”
He hit Mark a number of times to the head with the scaffolding pole and attempted to stab him. CCTV then showed him still clutching the weapons while walking back over the fence. “I just gave the t*** a few hits with the pole”, he told his mum.
Mark said he is now terrified of leaving the house and has nightmares about what happened. Judge Stephen Climie told Berry: “Looking at the injuries you’re fortunate not to be facing a sentence of life in prison because you intended to cause really serious bodily harm.” Threats issued by Berry before the violence should have been taken more seriously by Teign Housing and more security locks could have been fitted to his home, according to Mark.
Amanda Nicholls, Director of Customer and Communities at Teign Housing, said: “We take all reports of anti-social behaviour extremely seriously, and have a specialist team to manage cases intensively. In this case, we worked closely with the police and others to support what has been a complex situation.
“Our work saw a two-year community protection warning issued as an example of the robust actions we have taken to dissolve tensions. We welcome the court outcome and hope that it supports residents to enjoy their homes. We will continue to offer support to Mr and Mrs Taylor.”
