TV programme to show how killer of Halesowen pensioner was caught
A BBC TV programme is set to lay out the forensic examination which caught the killer of a Halesowen pensioner found dead in his home.
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The new episode of Forensics: The Real CSI on the BBC iPlayer will lay out how officers from West Midlands Police were able to work out how David Varlow died and piece together what had happened.
The 78-year-old was found dead at his home on Manor Lane in Halesowen in November 2021, having suffered a stress-induced heart attack after being tied to a chair by Adris Mohammed.
In the TV programme, the story begins with a 999 call from a neighbour who said that they hadn't seen Mr Varlow for a while and had found one of his windows was open, with police officers forcing entry into the property and finding it ransacked.
They also discovered the body of Mr Varlow on the floor of his living room, close to a discarded knife and with his untied arms almost crossed behind his back.
The programme looks at the DNA evidence found in Mr Varlow's home from a knife and a pair of scissors and a phone cable which had been left at the scene, as well as CCTV footage of people who had used Mr Varlow's bank card.
It ends with the arrests, trial and sentencing of Mohammed, as well as O'Shay Swan, with Mohammed receiving a life sentence with a minimum term of 33 years after being found guilty of burglary, fraud and the murder of Mr Varlow, while Swan was given six years for burglary and fraud.
A spokesman for West Midlands Police said: "A fatal burglary in Dudley and our investigation into who was responsible is the focus of the latest episode of Forensics: The Real CSI tonight.
"The elderly victim's house had been ransacked but the handles of a knife and a pair of scissors and a phone cable had been left at the scene.
"These offered our experts vital forensics opportunities around DNA traces as they helped investigators piece together what had happened.
"Frightened to Death is on BBC 2 at 9pm, or available on iPlayer from 6am."
