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Catherine Wells-Burr death: Trio guilty of murder | Catherine Wells-Burr death: Trio guilty of murder |
(35 minutes later) | |
A factory worker and his former partner have been found guilty of murdering his girlfriend in order to claim her six-figure life insurance policy. | A factory worker and his former partner have been found guilty of murdering his girlfriend in order to claim her six-figure life insurance policy. |
Rafal Nowak, 31, smothered Catherine Wells-Burr, 23, as she slept at their home in Chard, Somerset, in September. | Rafal Nowak, 31, smothered Catherine Wells-Burr, 23, as she slept at their home in Chard, Somerset, in September. |
His ex-girlfriend Anna Lagwinowicz, 32, and her uncle Tadevsz Dmytryszyn, 38, then disposed of the body in Ms Wells-Burr's car before setting it on fire. | |
A jury at Bristol Crown Court also found Dmytryszyn guilty of murder. | A jury at Bristol Crown Court also found Dmytryszyn guilty of murder. |
Ms Wells-Burr's family wept, gasped and loudly exclaimed "yes" as the guilty verdicts were returned. | |
Nowak was convicted unanimously by the jury, while Lagwinowicz and Dmytryszyn were found guilty by majority verdicts. | |
The jury took more than 12 hours and 30 minutes to return their verdicts. The trio will be sentenced on Monday. | |
Explicit dating websites | |
The court heard the murder was motivated by money and jealousy and was the result of months of secret meetings and phone calls between Nowak and Lagwinowicz. | The court heard the murder was motivated by money and jealousy and was the result of months of secret meetings and phone calls between Nowak and Lagwinowicz. |
Nowak, who also had a wife and child in Poland, had rekindled his relationship with his ex-girlfriend and was sleeping with her when he bought a home on Willow Way, in Chard, with Miss Wells-Burr. | Nowak, who also had a wife and child in Poland, had rekindled his relationship with his ex-girlfriend and was sleeping with her when he bought a home on Willow Way, in Chard, with Miss Wells-Burr. |
Miss Wells-Burr and Nowak, who appeared to be in a loving relationship, obtained life insurance worth £123,000 for both parties - naming each other as the sole benefactor. | Miss Wells-Burr and Nowak, who appeared to be in a loving relationship, obtained life insurance worth £123,000 for both parties - naming each other as the sole benefactor. |
But in the following months Nowak and Lagwinowicz created an elaborate trail of false phone calls and texts - which were meant to show Miss Wells-Burr had gone to see a secret lover and had met her death at his hands. | But in the following months Nowak and Lagwinowicz created an elaborate trail of false phone calls and texts - which were meant to show Miss Wells-Burr had gone to see a secret lover and had met her death at his hands. |
Lagwinowicz also signed up to explicit dating websites pretending to be Miss Wells-Burr and created profiles on social media of fictional male admirers of the university graduate. | Lagwinowicz also signed up to explicit dating websites pretending to be Miss Wells-Burr and created profiles on social media of fictional male admirers of the university graduate. |
After a failed attempt on her life two days earlier, Nowak used a pillow from the couple's bed to smother Miss Wells-Burr in the early hours of 12 September. | After a failed attempt on her life two days earlier, Nowak used a pillow from the couple's bed to smother Miss Wells-Burr in the early hours of 12 September. |
Her body was discovered by fire crews in her Ford Focus in a field in Ashill, Somerset later that morning. | Her body was discovered by fire crews in her Ford Focus in a field in Ashill, Somerset later that morning. |