Heir to £50M Estate Faces Trial for Alleged Pub Fight Injury
A man who inherited a National Trust estate after proving he was the illegitimate son of its owner is now on trial for allegedly breaking another man's leg in a pub brawl.
Jordan Adlard-Rogers, 38, is facing trial at Truro Crown Court after being charged with inflicting grievous bodily harm. The charge stems from an alleged pub fight on July 13, 2024, where Adlard-Rogers is accused of punching Sebastian Winzar in the Out of the Blue pub in Porthleven, Cornwall. The prosecution claims this action caused Mr. Winzar to fall and fracture his leg in two places.
The court heard that Adlard-Rogers and Mr. Winzar were acquaintances who were both present at the pub on the day of the incident. The prosecution stated that Mr. Winzar described Adlard-Rogers as aggressive and said he was being shouted at. CCTV footage presented to the jury allegedly shows Adlard-Rogers swinging his fist towards Mr. Winzar, causing him to fall. Mr. Winzar was taken to the hospital for his injuries, which included two leg fractures and a swollen lip.
Adlard-Rogers denies the charge. He reportedly returned to the pub the following day and told police they would likely want to speak with him. During a police interview, he provided a prepared statement claiming Mr. Winzar had threatened him and that he had acted to make him leave.
Adlard-Rogers inherited the 1,536-acre National Trust Penrose Estate in Cornwall in 2019, after years of effort to prove his paternity to the estate's former owner, Charles Rogers. Rogers died in August 2018 at the age of 62, with a DNA test confirming the relationship. As Rogers's mother and brother had also passed away, Adlard-Rogers became the sole heir.
Adlard-Rogers stated that he had known Charles Rogers might be his father since he was eight years old. He recounted attempts to establish contact and request a DNA test over the years, which were largely unsuccessful until shortly before Rogers's death. He moved into the estate after his inheritance, having previously worked as a community support worker.
His father's inquest revealed that Charles Rogers had struggled with drug abuse and died of an overdose of a prescription drug. He was reportedly living in his car and neglected his personal hygiene in the months leading up to his death. The inquest heard that Rogers had received a substantial weekly allowance from a trust that generated income for the estate's life tenant.
Adlard-Rogers expressed a desire to help local communities by setting up a charity, stating he did not want to forget his own past struggles. The Rogers family has a long history with the Penrose Estate, having gifted it to the National Trust in 1974 under an agreement that allowed the family to retain a 1,000-year lease.
The trial was adjourned and was scheduled to resume with witness testimonies.