Mum admits burying her baby in grounds of Yorkshire mansion

A 46-YEAR-OLD woman has admitted secretly giving birth to a stillborn baby boy and burying his body in a bin liner in the grounds of a 300-year-old mansion in West Yorkshire

Angela Owen pleaded guilty to concealing the birth and preventing the burial of the child, whose body was found in 2006 by workmen who were renovating Howroyd Hall, near Halifax.

Owen, who had not been seen since 2004, was arrested in the Somerset area earlier this year after an appeal on the BBC Crimewatch programme.

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She also pleaded guilty to a number of fraud charges relating to using different names in order to obtain a car, a passport, a driving licence and financial services.

Owen, with dyed red hair and wearing a grey coat and pink striped scarf, spoke only to confirm her name and enter pleas at Bradford Crown Court.

She admitted endeavouring to conceal the birth of the child, between 2001 and 2006, by secretly disposing of the dead body.

She also pleaded guilty to preventing the lawful burial between the same dates by putting the baby boy’s body in a black plastic bin liner and concealing it in the grounds of Howroyd Hall, in Barkisland.

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Owen used the name Angela Hobson to obtain a Lotus Elise car by deception, between November 2002 and December 2003, and credit services from the Co-op Bank, between October 9 2002 and January 31 2003.

She used the name Emma Smith to run a pub in Oldham between December 2003 and January 2004 and to try to get a driving licence in January 2004.

And she claimed to be Carla Geissler to try to get a passport in March 2004.

In April 2003, Owen made off from the Pennine Manor Hotel, in Huddersfield, without paying for £325.40 of accommodation, food and telephone calls.

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Owen, of Bowyers Close, Glastonbury, Somerset, pleaded not guilty to four charges, including obtaining property or services by deception and conspiracy to obtain property by deception.

Christopher Tehrani, prosecuting, said: “The Crown would not seek a trial on the counts where not guilty pleas have been entered.”

Mr Tehrani said Owen had entered a basis of plea that she committed the crimes because she was a domestic violence victim.

He said the Crown did not accept this at the moment and would investigate the claims.

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“Miss Owen says that she was a victim of domestic violence at the hands of a former partner and the majority of her actions were the result of his behaviour,” he said.

Workmen dug up the body of the baby in the garden of Howroyd Hall on July 12, 2006.

The property used to be owned by Emmerdale actor Richard Thorp, who played Alan Turner in the ITV1 Yorkshire Dales soap for more than 25 years.

Mr Thorp sold the house more than a decade before the discovery of the baby and Owen had been living there before the body was found.

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A post-mortem examination revealed it was a newborn, full-term baby boy.

West Yorkshire Police said the death was not suspicious but appealed for help to find Owen.

Before her arrest this year, Owen was last seen in June 2004 when she visited the Weston-super-Mare area.

She was known to have many aliases, including Ann Hall, Carla Geissler and Helen Gee.

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An appeal to find Owen was issued on the BBC Crimewatch programme in May this year.

She was arrested in Avon and Somerset a short time later.

Owen will appear before Bradford Crown Court again on December 14