A 23-year-old man is accused of raping and murdering an 89-year-old woman in her bed after breaking into her north London home, a court has heard. Reece Dempster allegedly attacked Dorothy Woolmer overnight on 3 and 4 August last year, inflicting severe injuries to her head and groin area.
The Old Bailey trial heard that Dempster entered Woolmer's home in Tottenham through a back door at night and armed himself with a truncheon he found in a downstairs cupboard while searching for cash. He spent about seven hours inside the property before fleeing just before 6am, changing clothes and leaving with his father nine minutes later.
Woolmer, whose husband Ken died in 2017, was described as 4ft 11in tall and weighing less than eight stone. Her body was discovered later that morning, semi-naked in her bed, by her sister and a close friend who became concerned when she failed to answer the door or telephone.
Prosecutor Anthony Orchard QC told jurors that Dempster had previously done gardening at Woolmer's home and had 'cased the premises', knowing a vulnerable elderly lady lived there. He is alleged to have broken in after 10.47pm, attacked Woolmer to find out where money was kept, and then sexually assaulted her.
CCTV footage showed Dempster vomiting at least three times upon leaving the property. He later made several journeys on foot in the area, coming metres from the crime scene. Dempster, of Tottenham, admits manslaughter but denies murder, one count of rape and two counts of assault by penetration.
The trial judge, Mr Justice Edis, warned jurors they would have a strong emotional reaction to the 'very sad and very disturbing evidence' and urged them to stand back from the horror.
