Freda Mook: Pensioner whose daughter-in-law Heather embezzled her money and poisoned her son
FREDA Mook became the target of her daughter-in-law Heather's deceitful scheme to embezzle £43,000 meant for her care.
Heather resorted to poisoning her husband to distract him from her theft.
Who was Freda Mook?
Freda Mook was an elderly woman from York, England and the mother of John Mook.
Her daughter-in-law was John's second wife, Heather Mook.
After the death of her husband, Freda moved into a nursing home.
Her daughter-in-law was put in charge of the finances, but Freda soon became the target of Heather's criminal actions.
READ MORE ON TRUE CRIME
She stole £43,000 from Freda's funds that were meant for her care.
Freda was largely unaware of the extent of her deceit, which included poisoning her son and Heather’s husband John to distract him while she executed her theft.
How did Heather Mook embezzle her mother-in-law's money?
The money left over from the sale of Freda's house was meant to pay her bills at the nursing home.
However, the home soon flagged to Freda's son John that bills had not been paid.
Most read in News TV
The home was owed £21,000 and said Freda would have to leave if it wasn't paid.
On the day John was due to go to the home to sort things out, he was rushed to hospital after becoming confused at home.
It was later discovered that Heather had embezzled her mother-in-law's money by attempting to confuse her husband through poisoning, which diverted his attention from her theft.
She poisoned John with rat poison and antidepressants while stealing the £43,000 intended for Freda's care, which a court heard had vanished after being in Heather's possession.
The scheme involved Heather administering the poison and amitriptyline to John’s spaghetti..
This dangerous combination was designed to make him disoriented, allowing her to get away with the theft.
Heather cleared out Freda’s savings and investments, which amounted to £43,000, leaving Freda financially vulnerable.
Police investigators were baffled over what Heather did with the stolen funds.
Detective Inspector Nigel Costello of York CID said: "They certainly haven't been hidden in any assets we have seen.
"We needed some assistance from her.
“She has maybe squandered it on holidays or perhaps even had a debt from before she met Mr Mook that we never knew about."
I think she needs some serious help and I hope she gets it
John Mook on wife Heather
The nursing home bills reached £21,000, but because of Heather's actions, John began to wonder why the payments were not being met.
The situation escalated when Heather faked medical advice and gave John enough antidepressants to cause severe symptoms, including hallucinations, leading to his hospitalisation.
When John's daughter witnessed Heather administering more tablets in the hospital, they alerted the police, which eventually led to her arrest.
Heather was sentenced to at least five years in prison in 2008 after being convicted of two counts of poisoning with intent to endanger life.
Judge James Spencer, QC, said about his decision: "I can tell you that a sentence of imprisonment is inevitable."
After her conviction, John Mook told the press outside of the court about Heather: "I think she needs some serious help and I hope she gets it."
She served 11 years and was released on March 3, 2020.
It was not Heather’s first encounter with crime, as she had a troubling history of fraud and theft long before her marriage to John.
READ MORE SUN STORIES
Her previous offences included manipulating friends for over £20,000 and using fraudulent means to acquire expensive cars.
She also poisoned her then seven-year-old daughter in 1982 by putting antidepressants into her child's food.