John Darwin disappearance case

John Darwin
Born1950 or 1951 (age 73–74)
Prudhoe, Northumberland, England
Occupation(s)Former teacher and prison officer[2]
Criminal statusReleased
SpouseAnne Darwin (née Stephenson)[2] (1973–2012; divorced)[3]
Criminal chargeFraud[1]

The John Darwin disappearance case involved the faked death of the British former teacher and prison officer John Darwin. Darwin turned up alive in December 2007, five and a half years after he was believed to have died in a canoeing accident.

Darwin was arrested and charged with fraud.[4] His wife, Anne, was also arrested and charged for helping Darwin to collect his life insurance of £250,000. The fraudulent claim had allowed the couple to pay off their £130,000 mortgage. In December 2007, after it was revealed the couple had been photographed together in Panama a year earlier, Anne confessed to knowing Darwin was alive and revealed that he had been secretly living in their house and the house next door, which allowed him to receive the insurance money for his own use. On 23 July 2008, John and Anne Darwin were each sentenced to more than six years in prison.[5]

  1. ^ "'Missing' man charged by police". BBC News. 8 December 2007. Retrieved 8 December 2007.
  2. ^ a b "The Mystery of John Darwin". The Guardian. London. 5 December 2007. Retrieved 8 December 2007.
  3. ^ "Canoe fake death wife Anne Darwin: I'll feel guilt until I die". BBC News. 5 October 2016. Retrieved 5 October 2016.
  4. ^ "'Canoe Man' John Darwin charged". CNN. 8 December 2007.
  5. ^ "John & Anne Darwin sentenced to jail". BBC. 23 July 2008. Retrieved 24 July 2008.