Karen Matthews rose to notoriety after staging the pretend kidnapping of her daughter Shannon 16 years in the past. Right here, The Mirror reveals what occurred to Britain's “worst mom” after she was launched from jail 4 years later.
When little Shannon Matthews disappeared, nobody would have believed her personal mom was behind it.
On a grey day in February 2008, media from world wide descended on a close-knit council property in Dewsbury, West Yorkshire, to report the tragic information nine-year-old woman had gone lacking in a case paying homage to the by Madeleine McCann.
Her determined mom, Karen Matthews, took to the airwaves to plead for her little woman's protected return as the area people rallied to seek for her day and evening. Distraught mom Karen made a collection of tearful tv appeals for assist to seek out her daughter as West Yorkshire Police launched one of many drive's greatest ever searches.
Then, 24 days after she was first reported lacking, the younger lady was discovered, hiding inside the bottom of a daybed in Michael Donovan's residence, only a mile from Karen's house. The poor woman had been drugged to maintain her calm and an elastic leash had been placed on her to forestall her from escaping it.
As occasions unfolded, surprising revelations got here to mild that Karen, alongside along with her boyfriend's uncle Michael Donovan, had organized Shannon's kidnapping so they may declare the £50,000 reward for “discovering her”. Right here, the Mirror takes a take a look at what occurred to Karen Matthews, dubbed Britain's “worst mom”, and the place she finds herself now…
Life behind bars
Karen Matthews, 48, was sentenced to eight years in jail for the kidnapping plot in 2009 and despatched to Peterborough Jail earlier than being moved to Foston Corridor Jail in Derbyshire. She informed a Mirror reporter that she “simply missed intercourse and purchasing” and that her former neighbor Julie Bushby visited her for about two years.
Julie, who organized the seek for the lacking Shannon, informed how Matthews had reworked her look, chopping her purple hair and dyeing it black on the jail hair salon. She additionally described how Matthews typically appeared with black eyes throughout her visits, stating that she had been attacked by different inmates at the very least six occasions. Throughout her time behind bars, she was uncovered to a get-rich-quick scheme by writing sexually express letters to male admirers from jail.
New id
Police described Matthews as “pure evil” after she was discovered responsible of kidnapping, false imprisonment and perverting the course of justice. Her boyfriend on the time, Craig Meehan, was not concerned within the kidnapping plot, however was convicted of possessing 49 indecent photos of youngsters on a house laptop in a separate incident. Shannon was raised by a brand new household below a brand new id and is now 25 years previous.
After her launch in 2012, Karen Matthews was given a brand new house and a brand new id within the south of England and informed she couldn’t go close to Dewsbury or contact Shannon or her six different youngsters, who had been put in jail. in care. Regardless of being convicted of kidnapping Shannon and serving 4 years of an eight-year sentence, Matthews confirmed little regret.
In 2018, he spoke to the Mirror in an unpaid interview and nonetheless insisted he knew nothing in regards to the kidnapping plot that shocked the nation. The previous manufacturing unit cleaner claimed her notoriety prevented her from getting a job, which means she needed to survive on advantages of £25 per week. Karen acquired a job as a caregiver for an aged couple, however she was fired in June 2019 after reviews that her spouse grew to become suspicious of her friendship along with her husband. Talking for the primary time in an interview with The Mirror in 2018, she mentioned she had “given up on males”, that she would by no means marry and that she was attempting to get her life again on observe.
A troubled love life
Sources near Matthews claimed she started focusing on older males after leaving jail, posting profiles on web sites for ladies searching for monetary preparations with males. Then, in Might 2018, she discovered Eric Anderson, a 72-year-old sugar daddy, who showered her with cash and items to fund a lavish way of life. Eric denied the connection was sexual, saying: “It’s my Christian obligation to clarify what love is all about.”
Then, over Christmas 2019, Matthews grew to become engaged to handyman Paul Saunders. It was additionally reported that she discovered faith and misplaced weight and that she even deliberate to make use of a surrogate mom to have a child along with her companion. However they quickly broke up after information emerged about their background. Saunders had been sentenced to 5 years in jail in 2010 for sexually abusing a 15-year-old woman.
What occurred to Donovan?
Craig Meehan was sentenced to 20 weeks in jail, however was launched the identical day as a result of he had spent extra time on remand than his sentence. The previous fishmonger, now 30 years previous and with a brand new title, didn’t take part within the false kidnapping however was jailed for indecent photos of minors discovered on his laptop.
In the meantime, Michael Donovan, who was sentenced to eight years however was launched early, was photographed by Sunday Mirror reporters exterior a restaurant watching youngsters enjoying close by in 2012. He had been spending six hours a day there and was detained by police after a request from parole officers. He was returned to jail for a brief interval. It’s unknown what occurred to him after that.