Man admits keeping pensioner's dead body in freezer for almost two years

A 52-year-old has admitted keeping a dead body in a freezer for almost two years.

Damion Johnson pleaded guilty at Derby Crown Court on Tuesday to a charge of preventing the lawful and decent burial of 71-year-old John Wainwright.

Mr Wainwright died in September 2018 and was discovered in August 2020 in the freezer of a property in Birmingham.

The offence is believed to have taken place when the pair lived in a flat in Cleveland Tower, Holywell Head, in Birmingham city centre, but Mr Wainwright’s cause of death is yet to be ascertained.

As he entered the dock in courtroom one, the defendant, who lives in the Stockbrook area of the city, was asked by the dock officer if he was nervous to which he replied "terrified" before being asked to enter his pleas.

Wearing a Las Vegas Raiders jacket, a chequered shirt, patterned trousers and deck shoes, Johnson, of Sun Street, Derby, admitted one count of preventing the lawful and decent burial of a dead body between September 1 2018 and August 22 2020.

But the 52-year-old denied three counts of fraud by false representation concerning using Mr Wainwright’s bank card to withdraw money from cash machines, pay for goods and transfer money to his own account between September 23 2018 and May 7 2020.

Judge Shaun Smith KC told Johnson he will face trial on November 7.

When asked by the judge what Johnson’s defence will be, Raglan Ashton, mitigating, said: "He says he was not acting dishonestly, namely that he maintains that he was entitled to the funds in Mr Wainwright’s account.

"The arrangement was that monies would be paid jointly into Mr Wainwright’s account, so essentially he maintains that it was his funds in Mr Wainwright’s account and in short he was entitled to them."

It is understood that Mr Wainwright's cause of death is as yet unascertained.

Johnson remains on bail.