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| Peter McMahon death: Two jailed for freezer body murder | Peter McMahon death: Two jailed for freezer body murder |
| (35 minutes later) | |
| Two people have been jailed for life for the murder of a pensioner whose body they dumped in a chest freezer before plundering his bank account. | Two people have been jailed for life for the murder of a pensioner whose body they dumped in a chest freezer before plundering his bank account. |
| Peter McMahon, 68, was found in a flat in Newcastle in December. He had suffered a number of injuries, including gouging to his eyes. | Peter McMahon, 68, was found in a flat in Newcastle in December. He had suffered a number of injuries, including gouging to his eyes. |
| Sharon Swinhoe, 44, was ordered to serve a minimum term of 25 years by the judge at Newcastle Crown Court. | Sharon Swinhoe, 44, was ordered to serve a minimum term of 25 years by the judge at Newcastle Crown Court. |
| Joseph Collins, 54, was handed a minimum term of 20 years. | Joseph Collins, 54, was handed a minimum term of 20 years. |
| Both had denied murder but were found guilty. They were also convicted of perverting the course of justice. | Both had denied murder but were found guilty. They were also convicted of perverting the course of justice. |
| 'Sinister and controlling' | |
| Ronald Douglas was jailed for four years after admitting perverting the course of justice. He had helped move Mr McMahon's body. | |
| The 77-year-old, of Gateshead, was cleared of murder. | The 77-year-old, of Gateshead, was cleared of murder. |
| Mr McMahon was last seen alive on 18 October last year when he took a taxi to the home of Swinhoe, with whom he had been having a relationship. | |
| There he was subjected to a sustained attack in which Swinhoe gouged Mr McMahon's eyes with her finger nails, causing a fatal cardiac arrhythmia. | |
| His body was later moved to Collins's flat in Elswick and stored in a second-hand chest freezer. | |
| The trial heard that the former civil servant was "besotted" with Swinhoe, and the prosecution said she treated him as a "sugar daddy". | |
| Mr Justice Globe described her as a "sinister and controlling" woman who used her "charm" to manipulate men. | |
| He said Swinhoe had shown no remorse. | |
| "You appear to care more about the rats you kept as pets than the man who loved you, asked to marry you and bought you an £1,100 engagement ring", he said. |