A man who murdered a retired university teacher and admitted to defrauding his neighbour has paid more than £124,000 to their families after selling the flat he bought with their inheritance, it has been reported.
This comes as recent reports regarding a new BBC drama series about Benjamin Field who defrauded the vulnerable by manipulating them into fake relationships to change their wills.
Field was convicted of Peter Farquhar’s murder on August 2019 after a 10-week trial and was given a life sentence with a minimum term of 36 years. Prior to this, Farquhar changed his will to name Field as the main beneficiary and gave him a life interest in his house.
After the property had been sold, Field bought a flat in Towcester Northamptonshire, which has now been sold with proceeds going to the victims’ families.
In June 2020, during a legal proceeding focused on the illicit gains, Field was instructed by Oxford Crown Court to provide over £190,000 in compensation to the families of his victims. The distribution of this compensation was 84% to the Farquhar family and 16% to the neighbours family.
However, the court was informed that only a sum of £146,561.02 was accessible. Field was then mandated to make this payment within three months or else his 36-year minimum prison term would be extended by 16 months.
Later on, Field was granted additional time to fulfil the payment obligation due to changes in the available amount. These changes were attributed to factors such as the selling price of a property, associated fees, and expenses related to repairs.
