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Allan Chappelow |
‘Snoopers’ in victim recluse’s garden
Neighbours tell Old Bailey how they confronted strangers before pensioner was found dead
NEIGHBOURS of Allan Chappelow, the pensioner found dead in his ramshackle home, confronted two mysterious men loitering around the overgrown front garden, the Old Bailey heard this week.
A jury of eight men and four women have been listening to prosecution evidence against defendant Wang Yam, 47, of Denning Road, Hampstead.
He stands accused of murdering Mr Chappelow, 86, in the summer of 2006, stealing the reclusive pensioner’s identity and attempting to milk his bank accounts of thousands of pounds.
Mr Chappelow’s neighbour, Lady Listowel, the widow of the 5th Earl of Listowel and former Lords committee chairman William Hare, told the court yesterday (Wednesday) that in April 2006 she had confronted two strangers she had found snooping around. She told the court that one was wearing “scruffy” shoes and spoke with a South African accent. She told the court: “One was wearing a camel-haired coat and had fake tan with spiky blonde hair.”
At first, she said, she thought they might be estate agents.
“They seemed quite nervous of me and wanted to get away,” she said.
Lady Listowel said the poor state of the house often attracted interest from passers-by, as it stood out from the pristine nature of other houses in Downshire Hill. It had been struck by lightening in the past which had caused fire damage, and Mr Chappelow had been warned he could be prosecuted because of the dangerous nature of his electricity supply.
Among the witnesses called this week by prosecution QC Mark Ellison was Brigitte Mierau, the housekeeper of Lady Listowel. She revealed she would often see the victim strolling through the streets of Hampstead, or bump into him at the nearby Keats Library – although the pair never spoke to one another.
When Mr Chappelow decided to visit relatives in the United States in March 2006, he asked Lady Listowel and Ms Mierau to keep an eye on his post and make sure postmen were pushing the letters right through the letterbox. Mr Chappelow had problems in the past with delivery workers, who had for some time refused to deliver to the address due to the overgrown state of the front garden, the court heard.
Ms Mierau said: “Sometimes post would stick out of the letter box or poke out from under the door.”
Other witnesses included Jonathan Smith, a bank manager for HSBC in Finchley Road. He said his staff knew Mr Chappelow by sight as he always wore the same grey raincoat, no matter what the weather, and would come into the bank once a fortnight to pay in cheques.
Mr Smith called the police after receiving no answer to a letter he wrote to Mr Chappelow at the beginning of June regarding cheques made out to him worth £14,000 – but that had been paid into an account at the Bank of China under the name of Jenny Zao. His actions led to officers breaking into the property and discovering Mr Chappelow’s body.
The trial continues. |
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