Stephen Seddon, 46 is accused of murdering his parents Robert, 68, and Patricia, 65, in their home after a failed attempt to kill them by driving a car they were travelling in into a canal, the Daily Mail reports.
Manchester Crown Court heard the 46-year-old had debts and needed cash despite his parents having gifted him almost $60,000 as well as buying him a home.
Prosecutor Peter Wright QC said on July 6 last year Seddon shot his parents from close range and then placed the weapon in his father’s lap to make it appear that he had killed his wife before taking his own life.
“The person responsible not only wanted rid of Robert and Patricia Seddon, a quiet, unassuming, elderly couple. He wanted to lay a false trail,” Mr Wright said.
“A trail, we say, he hoped would lead away rather than towards a man with a considerable motive to kill these two people. That man was their son, the defendant, Stephen Seddon.”
Mr and Mrs Seddon had nominated each other as beneficiaries in their wills but in the case that both of them died their son, who had been unemployed since October 2011, stood to receive everything.
The court also heard on March 20 last year Seddon made the first attempt to kill his parents by driving a rented BMW into a canal with the elderly couple aboard.
After the crash Seddon managed to free himself from the vehicle and climbed onto the roof.
Witnesses said they told him to get off the car because he was causing it to sink with his parents still inside.
Mr Wright said that Seddon was “doubly fortunate” in the accident as he had a knife to cut his seatbelt and free himself and a steering wheel lock, which he used to break the car’s window and escape.
Seddon has denied two charges of murder and two charges of attempted murder.
No comments:
Post a Comment