LONDON – Malaysian Deborah Chong Mee Kuen could have been decapitated in London and her headless body dumped 350km away in Devon, the court here heard today.
London’s Central Criminal Court (Old Bailey) heard that Jemma Mitchell was accused of carrying out a “particularly violent murder” involving the victim being decapitated and her body transferred to the woodlands in Salcombe, where it was eventually found following a flash flood.
Mitchell, 36, from Brondesbury Park in northwest London, was charged with the 67-year-old pensioner’s murder and faces life in prison.
Chong was reported missing from her home in Wembley, north London, on June 11 before her body was found in the seaside resort town of Salcombe on June 27.
An initial post-mortem at the Royal Devon and Exeter Hospital last week failed to establish the cause of Chong’s death, reports British media.
Her head is still missing.
Mitchell, who appeared at Old Bailey by video link from Bronzefield prison, spoke only to confirm her name and date of birth.
Judge Mark Lucraft QC set a plea hearing for September 28 and remanded Mitchell into custody.
Chong, originally from Kuala Lumpur, had lived in Wembley for over 30 years.
She was described by friends and neighbours as a devout Christian, friendly and helpful, but was also someone who was too trusting of others. – The Vibes, July 13, 2021
