A man in England has admitted storing a pensioner’s body in a freezer for nearly two years but denies using her bank card to withdraw cash.
Damion Johnson pleaded guilty at Derby Crown Court on Tuesday to keeping the body of 71-year-old John Wainwright in a freezer at a property in Birmingham.
Mr. Wainwright died in September 2018 and was found in August 2020.
The crime is believed to have taken place while the couple lived in a flat in Cleveland Towers, Holywell Head, Birmingham city centre, but the cause of Mr Wainwright’s death is yet to be ascertained.
Wearing a Las Vegas Raiders jacket, plaid shirt, patterned trousers and platform shoes, Johnson, of Sun Street, Derby, admitted preventing the lawful and decent burial of a body between September 1, 2018, and August 22, 2020.
But the 52-year-old denied three counts of fraud by making false statements relating to using Mr Wainwright’s bank card to withdraw money from cash machines, pay for goods and transfer money to his account between September 23, 2018 and May 7, 2020 :
Judge Sean Smith QC told Johnson he would stand trial on November 7.
Asked by the judge what Johnson’s defense would be, Raglan Ashton, mitigating, said:
“The arrangement was that the monies would be jointly paid into Mr Wainwright’s account, so essentially he is claiming that these were his funds into Mr Wainwright’s account and in short, he was entitled to them.”
Johnson remains on bail.