Maids Moreton murderer Benjamin Field launches fresh appeal bid

Описание: A churchwarden convicted of "gaslighting" then murdering an author in a plot to inherit his fortune launched a fresh appeal bid, claiming he "simply didn't do" the crime.

Benjamin Field, 35, admitted he was a "snake talker" who had duped 69-year-old Peter Farquhar into a fake relationship to get him to change his will but denied killing him.

Mr Farquhar was found dead in his home in the Buckinghamshire village of Maids Moreton in October 2015, with a bottle of 60 proof whisky beside him, with a post-mortem later putting his death down to "acute alcohol toxicity."

Field was accused of giving Mr Farquhar the alcohol and/or sleeping pills called Dalmane so that he suffered what appeared to be an "alcoholic's death," leaving Field to inherit his fortune.

He was convicted at Oxford Crown Court in August 2019 and jailed for life, with a minimum of 36 years to serve behind bars before he could apply for parole.

The case later became the subject of the four-part 2023 BBC drama, called 'The Sixth Commandment,' which starred actor Timothy Spall as Mr Farquhar.

Following an unsuccessful appeal bid in 2022, Field's case was referred to the Court of Appeal by the Criminal Cases Review Commission (CCRC) on the basis that his conviction was arguably unsafe.

His lawyers, led by David Jeremy KC, argued that trial judge Mr Justice Sweeney misdirected the jury on how they should consider whether Field was guilty, leading to him being convicted of a murder which he "simply didn't do."

He said the cause of Mr Farquhar's death was the "ingestion of whisky and/or Dalmane" and that the prosecution had no evidence that Field's providing substances had actually caused the ingestion, rather than it being a "voluntary" act of the deceased.

However, the prosecution, led by David Perry KC, is contesting the appeal, urging three senior judges to rule that the conviction was in fact safe and ensure Field is not released.

After hearing argument from both sides, Lord Justice Edis, sitting with Mr Justice Goose and Mr Justice Butcher, said judgment would be reserved until a future date.

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