A 65-year-old man accused of murdering his "soul mate" and storing her body in a chest freezer for nearly three years allegedly went to a pub for a full English breakfast, a pint of Strongbow Dark Fruit and a double whisky the morning after her death.
Delia McInerney was found dead in George Gordon's flat on Gerards Court in St Helens in January this year, alongside her five guinea pigs, which he is accused of drowning. The 62-year-old is believed to have been killed in April 2023, apparently struck over the head with a hammer. She had reportedly been planning to move to Portugal to start a "new life" days later.
Gordon, from Anfield, is accused of buying a sledgehammer and an electric handsaw from eBay in the weeks before her death, then stealing thousands of pounds from her bank account and taking out a £10,000 loan in her name. He is on trial at Liverpool Crown Court, where he denies murder and causing unnecessary suffering to an animal.
Timeline of the alleged killing
The jury of five men and seven women heard details of the events of April 11 2023, when Ms McInerney is believed to have died. At 12.31pm that day, Gordon received an email receipt from JD Wetherspoon for a £37.33 purchase at the Glass House pub on Market Street in St Helens, including a pint of San Miguel, a pint of guest ale, a five-bean chilli, half a chargrilled chicken with mashed potato and gravy, a small bowl of chips and an eight-inch garlic bread with cheese.
A receipt recovered from Ms McInerney's car showed that at 5.06pm she made a £20.95 purchase from Asda on Utting Avenue in Walton, buying items including chocolate, milkshake, courgettes, yoghurt, broccoli, peppers, a vegan pie, onions, cake, soft drinks, milk and a bag for life. Another receipt showed she bought £14.18 of fuel from a petrol station in Kirkby at 5.21pm.
At 6.06pm, Gordon recorded a video on his mobile phone showing her feeding guinea pigs and a rabbit in his flat, which was said to be "the last time that she was seen alive". Around half an hour later, at 6.34pm, Ms McInerney messaged a friend, Miguel, scheduling a Skype call for 7pm, telling him her "friend was cooking ratatouille for her". At 6.50pm, she emailed another contact, Esther, saying she was "off to Portugal tomorrow".
Financial transactions and the freezer purchase
A further email sent to Miguel at 8.44pm had "grammar was different" and was "not been signed off with a D" for Delia, as in her earlier messages, with previously lower-case 'i' letters now in upper case. In the early hours of April 12 2023, Gordon is said to have used her phone to access her Co-op bank account before using her Capital One account to buy a £38.69 meat cleaver from Amazon at 7.13am.
At 8.15am, Ms McInerney's Co-op account made a £750 transaction into Gordon's Santander account with the reference "dad". It was the first transaction between the two accounts, but there were 153 in total until Gordon's arrest in January this year. A £1,367.44 payment followed from her Co-op account into his Nationwide account, the first of 142 transfers between those accounts up to January 2026.
At 10.48am, Gordon made a £300 cash withdrawal, followed by a £41.10 purchase from Wilko at 11.48am. His Nationwide account also recorded a £500 withdrawal. At 11.35am, he received an email from Stonegate Pub Group confirming a £23.10 order at the Sefton pub on Baldwin Street in St Helens, for a full English breakfast with brown bread toast and butter, white bread toast with butter, a double Lagavulin 16-year-old whisky, a pint of Strongbow Dark Fruit and a bottle of Strathmore spring water.
At 11.43am, activity on his Amazon account showed the purchase of a Haier chest freezer for £307.50. He later made another £5.40 purchase for two pints of Theakston's mild at the pub at 12.41pm.
Prosecution says defendant admits killing
Martin Reid KC, for the crown, told the jury during the prosecution's opening: "On the 8th of January this year, the police attended the defendant George Gordon's flat in St Helens. They went there because concerns had been raised by a number of people and agencies about the whereabouts and wellbeing of Delia McInerney."
He added: "Unbeknown to them, but known very well to the defendant, Delia McInerney had died in April 2023 at the defendant's hands. Her dismembered body was found in a chest freezer in the defendant's flat on the 8th of January this year. In the meantime, the defendant fraudulently obtained thousands of pounds from her bank accounts and obtained a loan and credit cards in her name. The defendant admits that he killed Delia McInerney but claims, we understand, that he acted in self-defence."
Gordon, represented by Gordon Cole KC and Philip Tully, denies murder and causing unnecessary suffering to an animal. The trial, before Mr Justice Goose, continues.
