A woman has been arrested on suspicion of murder after a 75-year-old man was found dead in Bolton, as police in Tenerife captured a notorious fraudster who preyed on the elderly.
Pamela Gwinnett, 63, dubbed the ‘Black Widow’, treated frail 89-year-old Joan Green as a ‘cash cow to be milked’, a judge said. Gwinnett isolated Green from her family, accused them of mistreating her, and used the nearly £300,000 she stole to make substantial mortgage payments, enjoy slap-up meals and get Botox treatments.
“Woman arrested for murder of 75-year-old in Bolton; 'Black Widow' fraudster Pamela Gwinnett arrested in Tenerife.”
A jury at Preston Crown Court found Gwinnett guilty of fraud and theft last year. But she skipped bail and flew to Tenerife in April last year, before the trial even started, meaning she has yet to serve a single day of the six-year sentence imposed in her absence.
Spanish police released footage showing a tanned Gwinnett in handcuffs after arresting her in the resort town of Los Cristianos, where she owned a semi-detached villa. ‘Officers have arrested a fugitive in southern Tenerife who was wanted by the UK authorities for a fraud offence committed against an elderly woman,’ a National Police force spokesman said. ‘The events described caused significant public outrage and strong condemnation among the British public due to the method used and the victim’s extreme vulnerability, eventually gaining attention in Spain. After being located in Tenerife, on July 14 National Police officers received the International Arrest Warrant issued by the British authorities. She was arrested just a few hours later in the town of Los Cristianos, Arona, where she owned a semi-detached villa and was living her daily life as normal.’
Gwinnett now faces extradition to the UK to start her prison sentence. It is not immediately clear whether she has indicated consent to extradition or will fight a forced return. However, she is likely to delay but not impede that return by contesting extradition.
At her trial, the court heard that Joan Green had worked as an accountant and her husband had been a senior manager at British Aerospace. ‘Both had worked hard during their working lives, and they had invested carefully and shrewdly for their old age,’ Judge Michael Maher said. ‘But to you, Joan Green was simply a cash cow to be milked until she was dry.’ The judge also made a confiscation order, putting Gwinnett’s home in Adlington, Lancashire, at risk.