A 23-year-old man has been found guilty of murdering a 71-year-old woman in her home in Neasden, north-west London, and stealing £13,000 from her bank account. Xyaire Howard bound and strangled Susan Hawkey to force her to reveal her PIN, the Old Bailey heard.
Howard and his girlfriend Chelsea Grant, 28, both from Press Road, Neasden, were remanded into custody pending sentencing. The couple, who lived nearby, had repeatedly robbed Ms Hawkey before the killing last September. Grant was cleared of murder but found guilty of three counts of robbery and one of attempted robbery.
Ms Hawkey's decomposing body was discovered about three weeks later under a duvet in her living room. She had her hands taped and tied behind her back, her eyes taped shut, and a ligature knotted around her neck. Prosecutor Annabel Darlow KC described her as a highly vulnerable elderly woman who lived an isolated life.
Howard admitted tying Ms Hawkey's hands to extract her PIN but maintained she was alive when he left. The pair used her bank card to buy perfume, a television, speakers, phones, clothes, and other items, and sent money to St Vincent and the Grenadines. The victim's bank balance fell from over £16,000 to £3,434.
