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Jilted lover 'strangled heiress in jealous rage'
Jobless heavy drinker admits killing wealthy ex-fiancée but denies her murder Olwen Dudgeon The spurned ex-fiancé of a wealthy heiress strangled her to death because he feared she would go out with another man, a murder trial heard.
The naked body of Suzy Healey was found in bed at her luxury country mansion the morning after Richard George Holtby told a friend he had done something terrible when she threatened to go out with someone else, the court was told.
Jobless Holtby had started the relationship nine months earlier with Ms Healey, the daughter of multi-millionaire Malcolm Healey, who made a fortune selling his Hygena kitchen business.
Her uncle, Eddie Healey, is one of the wealthiest men in Britain after he and property developer Paul Sykes turned a derelict site in Sheffield into the Meadowhall shopping centre.
Although Holtby moved in with Ms Healey and there was talk of marriage, with an engagement informally announced in March last year, both were heavy drinkers and their affair was marred by regular arguments and fallings-out, James Goss QC, prosecuting, told Hull Crown Court yesterday.
By June 2005 she asked him to leave her home at Ellerker Hall, East Yorkshire, and, although the on-off relationship continued for a while, by early August she had insisted he move out completely and he went to live with his parents in South Cave, near Hull.
He wanted the affair to continue but she just wanted to stay friends, said Mr Goss.
On August 21, after Ms Healey had been celebrating her forthcoming 40th birthday with family and friends at a restaurant, Holtby, who had not been invited, arrived at her mansion. He was left alone with her and she was never seen alive again.
"Only two people know precisely what happened, when and why, and only one, of course, is alive to give his version," Mr Goss said.
At 10.28pm Holtby phoned a friend, Michael Naylor, and said he thought he might have done something terrible. Later he arrived at his home driving Ms Healey's Mitsubishi pick-up, although he was a disqualified driver, the jury heard.
He was intoxicated, holding a bottle of whisky and tripped over a step. He said he thought he might have strangled her, saying they had spoken earlier and she had been threatening to go out with someone else. Mr Naylor thought he was exaggerating and because of his state persuaded him to stay, Mr Goss added.
Holtby fell asleep and left the next morning, but because of what had been said Mr Naylor's girlfriend, Susan Webb, went to check at Ellerker Hall. She could get no answer and called the police.
"In the double bed on the mezzanine floor off a spiral staircase on the first floor, lay the cold, naked body of Suzy Healey," said Mr Goss.
Holtby, 38, denies murdering Ms Healey, 39, but has admitted her manslaughter. Mr Goss told the six-woman, six-man jury it was anticipated that Holtby, known as George, would claim he had not intended to kill or seriously harm Ms Healey when he strangled her and secondly would allege he was acting under provocation. "The prosecution say this is a case of murder."
He said Ms Healey had the good fortune to be a member of an extremely wealthy family. She had been married and had two daughters, Jasmine and Angelica, now in their teens, but had divorced in the mid 1990s.
Despite her wealth she experienced unhappiness and suffered episodes of depression while living alone at Ellerker Hall, where she looked after a number of animals.
She was a heavy drinker and at the time of her death was banned from driving as a result of drink-driving offence. Holtby too was a heavy drinker and was disqualified from driving for the same reason. He had never married but began the relationship with Ms Healey in December, 2004.
As the affair flourished he moved in and terminated the lease on his rented home in Brough. Apart from his personal possessions he had no assets.
Mr Goss said one of the sources of their regular arguments was Holtby not working. "She thought he was lazy and didn't want him living off her," he said. "She also didn't like his controlling behaviour." Holtby did not like her drinking.
At the time of their plans to marry, Ms Healey's accountant, Jane Oldfield, advised her about entering into a cohabitation contract preventing either of them claiming a share of the other's property. However, that was never finalised because by June, Holtby had left Ellerker Hall at the heiress's request.
Between August 6 to 13 Ms Healey had a holiday alone in Benidorm. The week after her return Holtby was seen speaking angrily on his mobile phone saying "you asked me to move in with you" and "I've rented it out now" followed by "and now you're throwing me out."
Mr Goss told the jury at 7.10am on the morning the body was found a motorist saw Holtby throwing something from the Mitsubishi into a field.
Jeans were later found with socks stuffed in the pockets. The jeans had stains consistent with his wearing them at the time of the killing.
The previous evening before arriving at his friend's home he had been caught on cctv buying whisky, cider and cigarettes wearing different clothes, suggesting by then he had already changed.
The following morning, while police were at the scene, Holtby telephoned the gardener at the hall, Trevor Harrison and said: "She's dead and it's finished."
He said he loved Suzy, the kids and Trevor but had nothing to live for after destroying her.
He claimed to be in Grantham but told another friend he was in the North. Mr Goss said Holtby had actually driven towards Whitby where he collided with other vehicles in Silver Street. At 11.16am the Mitsubishi was seen in Sleights near Whitby. The engine was stalled and Holtby was slumped drunk over the wheel.
Home Office Pathologist Dr Kenneth Shorrock told the jury Ms Healey had died as a result of manual strangulation requiring at least 20 to 30 seconds of unremitting pressure.
Her blood alcohol reading showed she was three times over the drink-driving limit at the time.
The trial continues.
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