Police bodycam footage shows the moment officers discovered a man had kept his dead mother's body in a freezer for three years while fraudulently claiming almost £78,000 in benefits.
Christopher Phillips, 60, hid the body of his 89-year-old mother, Silvia Phillips, inside a chest freezer in the living room of their home in Porthcawl, South Wales. The newly released footage shows South Wales Police officers arriving at Phillips' home on a quiet cul-de-sac after a GP raised concerns about Ms Phillips' welfare, having not heard from her for several years.
Discovery of the Body
When officers arrived, Phillips began raising suspicions by answering their questions but remaining evasive about his mother's whereabouts. As they asked him to put his phone down, he said: 'And just so you know, goodbye' – before claiming the message was intended for his girlfriend.
Officers subsequently decided to search the property and soon came across a large family chest freezer in the living room. Inside, wrapped in a blanket, was the frozen body of his mother. Her body had been covered with a leopard-print throw decorated with yellow and pink roses. A birthday card reading 'To Mum, from Christopher and Tina' – a reference to the family dog – was also found with her.
Investigation and Sentencing
Major Crime detectives arrested Phillips as an investigation was launched into the circumstances surrounding his mother's death. Phillips, a company director, later claimed that he 'didn't want to let her go' and 'wanted more time with her'.
Defending, Ruth Smith told the court her client had been suffering from 'extreme grief' and had placed his mother's body in the living room so he could remain close to her. She said Phillips would occasionally hold his mother's hand and speak to her about what was on television.
However, he later admitted to preventing his mother's lawful and decent burial, along with two counts of fraud for failing to notify the Department for Work and Pensions and Bridgend County Borough Council of her death. In total, Phillips received £78,190.92 in state pension, pension credit, attendance allowance, winter fuel payments, cost-of-living payments and housing benefit – all of which would have stopped had her death been reported.
Background and Aftermath
He was jailed for two years and four months at Merthyr Tydfil Crown Court in August. The court heard Phillips had given up work to become a full-time carer for his mother in the months before her death on March 8, 2023.
On the day she died, for reasons unknown, Phillips held his mother in his arms and told her he would 'look after her'. Just two days later, he bought a chest freezer from AO.com and placed it in the living room with her body inside.
When police eventually arrived to question him, Phillips initially claimed his mother was staying in London with cousins. But when officers pressed him for more information, he was unable to name the relatives or say where they lived.
In mitigation, Ms Smith told the court Phillips had been adopted by Ms Phillips when he was two years old and that the pair had been 'exceptionally close'. The court heard they had lived together for 50 years, with Phillips acting as his mother's primary carer since 2008.
Channel 5 is revisiting the disturbing case in a new documentary, Forensics: Murder Scene, which aired at 9pm tonight.
