A millionaire landlord held captive in a "foul, unhygienic cell" was found starved to death after a controlling carer wanted a slice of his wealthy estate, a jury was told today.

Lynda and Wayne Rickard moved into High Havens Farm, South Newington, owned by James “Anthony” Sootheran in 2006 and planned to defraud his estate and the fortunes of his elderly mother, Joy, the court heard.

Greedy Lynda Rickard had previously admitted forging the will of 92-year-old Joy where she was set to gain half of the £1.5million estate.

Similarly, she conceded she had forged the will of the pensioner's only son Anthony - where she would inherit a third of his £3.5million fortune when he died.

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Just 18 months after elderly Joy died having suffered with dementia, the severely malnourished body of 59-year-old Anthony was discovered in his home, having been under the care of Lynda Rickard, the jury heard.

A horrified doctor found the body of her skeletal patient in his bedroom, next to a plate of chocolate bars, a doughnut and a bag of McDonalds that looked “fresher than him,” the jury heard today.

In his younger years, retired auctioneer's clerk Mr Sootheran weighed 17 stone but the frail body discovered on March 18 2014 was HALF the size of his former self, weighing a meagre nine stone. 

Intuition led Dr Hilary Edwards to check on her patient but she was greeted with locked gates. The doctor waited for live-in carer Lynda Rickard to return who told the GP she had not seen Anthony since the previous morning.

Prosecutor Mr Saxby QC said: “They entered the address and both went upstairs to Anthony’s room. The smell was terrible. Lynda Rickard made a play of knocking loudly but there was no response.

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“They both entered and there they found Anthony, severely emaciated and dead. He was lying, naked from the waist down, on a mattress on the floor with a stained duvet over him.”

The doctor was struck by how clean the room looked, ‘cleaner than normal’ and noted there were new clothes on the chair and food placed near Anthony, which was unusual in her experience, the prosecuting counsel added.

A disturbing video from police body-worn camera footage of the gruesome scene was played to the jury.

Mr Saxby said: “One police officer has a vague memory of there being a bucket in the room used as a toilet. The blanket was wet, the room smelled of urine and it was freezing cold.

“And the food, as you have seen it in the footage, looked fresh - fresher than Anthony, as one of the officers put it. Indeed, it seemed almost as if it had been placed there after his death.”

A post-mortem examination was carried out which found that the body was "severely lacking in muscle," Mr Justice Wall heard.

The jury was also told how Anthony’s body was "scaly" and there was a huge pressure sore at the base of his spine. The pathologist concluded that malnutrition caused the weight loss which led to a lung infection and ultimately Anthony’s tragic death.

Mr Saxby said:  "Had he been referred for medical treatment when his life was first seriously in danger, in other words, a week or so before he died, Anthony would have survived."

The Rickards categorically denied murdering their live-in landlord for financial gain today but claimed it was the consequence of his own self-neglect and entirely coincidental to 62-year-old Lynda Rickard having forged his will.

Just six months before his frail body was discovered, Anthony’s cousin Richard Stubbs visited him and was "horrified" at what he witnessed.

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The court heard that on arrival, mother-of-three Lynda Rickard attempted to cancel the meeting as she had many times before but Mr Stubbs persisted and forced his way into Anthony’s bedroom upstairs.

Oliver Saxby QC, prosecuting, said: “Both Anthony and his room, were in a terrible state. He was thin and frail. The bedlinen was stained and looked like it had not been changed in months. A window pane was broken.

"In the corner, there was a pile of Anthony’s hair. There was no television in the room. There were no books, or magazines. In short, it was a cell. A foul, unhygienic, cell."

Anthony told Mr Stubbs that he never left his room and had last seen Lynda Rickard the previous evening, meaning he had not eaten or drunk that day, a jury heard.

“Anthony said he was worried about upsetting Lynda Rickard and scared of being evicted and placed in a mental health institution. He was totally dependent on Lynda Rickard and she was failing to feed him or take any care to ensure he had safe, clean living conditions,” the prosecuting counsel added.

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Mr Stubbs was so horrified that he took photos which the jury members were shown at today at Reading Crown Court.

In addition to murder, Lynda Rickard, 62, of Edinburgh Close, Banbury, also denies gross negligence manslaughter; fraud; and two counts of perverting the course of justice.

Bearded American Wayne Rickard, 66, and of the same address as his wife, was additionally charged with causing or allowing the death of a vulnerable adult after Anthony was discovered deceased in his bedroom; fraud; and perverting the course of justice.  He also denies murder.

Their friends Michael Dunkley, 49, of Brickle Lane, Bloxham, stood charged with fraud in relation to the forged will of Mr Sootheran alongside 41-year-old Denise Neal, of Radway Road, Lower Tysoe, Warwickshire.

Shanda Robinson, 51, of Sage Road, Banbury, denied fraud and conspiracy to pervert the course of justice.

The hearing continues.

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