A friend has stated that the gambling addict burglar who murdered an 86-year-old woman while searching her home for £30,000 in cash “followed the victim’s husband home from a betting shop.”
At Derby Crown Court, Vasile Culea, age 34, was convicted of murdering Freda Walker.
He was also found guilty of intentionally hurting the 88-year-old spouse of the victim, former district councillor and alderman Kenneth Walker, at their Derbyshire residence on January 14.
Prosecutor Michael Auty QC stated that the couple was found ‘locked, hog-tied, gagged, and abandoned to their fate’ in a’merciless’ attack.
Culea, a Romanian national, bound the hands and feet of Mr. and Mrs. Walker while searching their Langwith Junction, Derbyshire, home for £30,000 in cash, which he had heard they possessed.
The cash did exist, but it was not discovered until after the fact by police search teams, with testimony presented to the jury that Mr. Walker had forgotten where he had hidden it in the residence.
Mr. Walker’s longest buddy may have solved the mystery of how Vasile Culea knew their home contained £30,000 in cash.
Brian Murray-Carr claimed after the verdict that Culea accosted Mr. Walker and demanded money in a betting shop days before the incident.
Mr Murray-Carr, 89, who worked with Mr Walker in the mining sector and then followed him into local politics, said, ‘The information communicated to me was that Ken had withdrawn some money from the Lloyds Bank in Shirebrook, and the man in the dock had witnessed this.
‘Later in the day, Ken entered a betting shop in Shirebrook, when he was confronted by a man who wanted money.
My guess is that he followed Ken home in order to find out where he lived.
Mr. Murray-Carr continued, ‘I had a great deal of regard for Ken, both as a Bolsover district councillor and as a colleague in the mining sector. I hope that when he is condemned, life means life.
Photograph of Vasile Culea at the time of his arrest for the murder of Freda Walker.
The clip shows him being handcuffed and asked to authenticate his identity by police.
The moment the police arrested Culea has been captured on film. Officers are shown kicking down a door and yelling “remain where you are” before discovering and handcuffing the suspect in a bedroom.
Culea is then shown in a police cell with his hands handcuffed behind his back as he is informed that he is being arrested for the murder of Freda Walker.
Culea, a Romanian national, shackled the wrists and feet of the elderly couple while searching their home for £30,000 in cash, which he claimed to have learned about after overhearing two people discussing it in a shop.
Mr. Walker, who had hidden the cash in different locations throughout their home and could not recollect where he placed it, was forced to observe as Culea tormented his wife.
Mrs. Walker, who also had a bag placed over her head and died of a brain damage, was discovered dead in the kitchen the next day by emergency personnel in response to concerns made by neighbors.
The court heard that Mr. Walker died some months after the attack, but that his death was unrelated.
Kenneth and Freda Walker were ‘hog-tied’ in their residence by Vasile Culea.
At Derby Crown Court, Culea, age 34, has been convicted of murdering Freda Walker.
CCTV footage previously published revealed that on the morning of the attack, Culea entered multiple betting shops in Shirebrook and Mansfield before proceeding to the couple’s residence.
Culea had already admitted to the manslaughter of Mrs. Walker and the serious bodily harm of her husband, but prosecutors charged him with manufacturing “a nonsense” to cover up an attack on the couple that was “far beyond justification; ferocious in nature – and maintained.”
Culea, who escaped with £300 from a purse after being “scared” by the sounds of a motor outside, repeatedly lied about how the couple sustained injuries.
Michael Auty KC, prosecuting, told the jury that the victims suffered “really awful” injuries and that Mrs. Walker had a realistic chance of survival had she not been “abandoned without care” and “with coverings to her face restricting her airway.”
Footage shows Culea’s arrest; he was detained when his DNA was found on a baseball cap found at the crime scene.
He was convicted guilty of murdering Freda Walker at Derby Crown Court.
The jury of 11 men and one woman unanimously condemned the 34-year-old man after hearing his claim that he hurt Mrs. Walker by’slipping’ on a spilled drink and stepped on her chest when she ‘fell over’ during his attack.
The pair, who had lived in the same house for their entire 60-year marriage, was at the center of their neighborhood.
Freda, a retired seamstress, volunteered for charitable organizations, and Ken, a former accountant, served on the Langwith Town Council and had been a Labour Party Bolsover district councillor.
Culea, in contrast, was relatively new to the area and lived in a shared house three miles distant in Church Warsop.
The couple, who had spent their whole 60-year marriage in the same house, were pillars of their town.
The court heard that he fell into rent arrears and was £11,000 in debt by January due to excessive gambling.
On January 14, he started the day by visiting four local betting shops, where he lost an additional £250.
He then recalled overhearing a talk in a Shirebrook shop regarding a wealthy couple’s home near Langwith Junction.
It is unclear how he knew that Mr. Walker had lately withdrawn £30,000 in cash for home upgrades, but he stated that he planned to break into the house as the couple slept, conceal, and steal the money.
Around noon, he began to survey the surrounding region. The court heard that he conducted seven surveillance missions on the couple’s home, and CCTV footage captured his Audi A4 regularly driving by.
Eventually, he parked and, after twice passing passed the house on foot, about 7 p.m., he entered through an unlocked back door.
After the elderly spotted him hidden in their utility rooms and tied their wrists and feet while he demanded to know where the money was, he admitted to hitting them.
Ken, who buried the money in odd locations throughout their messy home, was unable to recall where he placed it and was forced to watch as Culea tormented his wife.
Five days after the incident, Culea was detained at a residence in Church Warsop, Nottinghamshire.
CCTV filmed Vasile Culea’s Audi A4 that day in the neighborhood surrounding the Walker residence.
Mr. Auty, the prosecutor, stated, “Imagine, if you can, the terror and worry.” If it would have prevented Freda’s misery, Ken would have given it up in a heartbeat.’
Culea claimed he abandoned the pair when he heard a car pull up outside and panicked.
CCTV footage showed him leaving the residence with the knowledge that he had left its inhabitants severely injured, bound, and unable to escape.
The next morning, concerned neighbors discovered their bodies lying in pools of blood. Mrs. Walker, who sustained 25 distinct injuries, was deceased, while Mr. Walker was in critical condition. He passed away three months before to the trial due to natural circumstances.
Dr. Michael Biggs, a pathologist, told the jury of eleven men and one woman, “When I entered the kitchen, she was laying on her left side with her arms wrapped over her back. Her wrists and ankles were bound together.”
There was a black bag wrapped around her face, a towel wrapped around her head and face, and significant amounts of blood around the body. Blood was splattered over the walls.
Police and forensic officers at the Langwith Junction, Derbyshire, crime scene
The deaths’ discovery triggered a thorough police inquiry. Culea was arrested after his DNA was found on a baseball cap found at the crime scene.
His DNA was in the police database because he was convicted of assaulting an ex-girlfriend in 2017, and his DNA was in the system.
Temporary Detective Inspector Carolyne Van Schaick stated, ‘Freda and Kenneth Walker were lifelong members of the Shirebrook community, contributing to life in the region through their work, participation in the local council, and caring and sociable natures in general.
All of their friends and relatives have attested to the fact that they have always put others before themselves.
Freda and Kenneth, having worked so diligently throughout the years, deserved a long, happy retirement and tranquility in their latter years.
The police hailed the families of Ken and Freda for their bravery during the ordeal.
This was taken from them in January, when Vasile Culea, believing that the couple kept money at the address, broke in with the aim to steal.
When he came across Freda and Kenneth, he attacked them, killing Freda and leaving Kenneth for dead. His techniques were genuinely surprising.
“While Kenneth may have survived the attack, he lost his wife and spent his last days requiring daily care until he tragically passed away shortly before this lawsuit was scheduled to be heard.
“I would want to thank the families of both Ken and Freda, who have displayed strength during this awful period, as well as the community of Shirebrook, who have supported each other and our investigation throughout.”
“Although this verdict cannot undo Culea’s acts on that night, I hope it brings some solace to the victims of this heinous murder that justice has been served.”
As the jury foreman announced the judgment, Culea, who was wearing a grey hoodie and grey track pants, closed his eyes.
Sandra Bunting, the niece of Mr. and Mrs. Walker, wiped away tears as she spoke on the steps outside Derby Crown Court following the decision and said, ‘I am numb but delighted they received the correct verdict.
I simply not comprehend how somebody could inflict such pain and torture. I hope he receives a lengthy term. He was cold-blooded, brutal, and had no conscience. All he desired was the money for which they had labored their entire lives.
Freda was the most considerate individual. She had time and affection for everyone. She was a joyful individual. She is greatly missed by everybody who knew her.
Mr. Justice Henshaw stated that he will return to court on Friday to sentence Culea, of Church Warsop.