Dying millionaire’s lover ‘asked if she was in his will every day’
She acted like a Tasmanian devil, court told
A DYING millionaire was pestered daily by his lover about the fortune she might inherit, a court heard yesterday.
Robert Dowey was dejected by Angela Marcantonio’s repeated questions about money as he fought through the latter stages of pancreatic cancer, it was said.
The claims were made by the wealthy businessman’s daughter Susan Roche as a jury heard more details of the bitter dispute that led to a violent brawl between the two women.
Roche, 48, is accused of launching a brutal attack on Miss Marcantonio at the family’s mansion after a row over the property developer’s will.
But she told a jury yesterday it was her father’s 64-year-old girlfriend who instigated the confrontation – and compared her frenzied state to a ‘Tasmanian devil’. Roche, who ran a beauty business with her father, said Miss Marcantonio had shown more concern about how much money she would be left than for Mr Howey’s health.
Other family members were left to care for the ailing businessman while Miss Marcantonio slept behind closed doors at the opposite end of their seven-bedroom home, it was said.
Jurors were told Mr Howey was hospitalised once after his girlfriend – described by Roche in court as a ‘greedy b****’ – forgot to give him vital medication.
Giving evidence at Durham Crown Court, Roche said her father’s lover had become obsessed with his estate after his cancer diagnosis in 2013.
On a family holiday in Tenerife, Roche said her father was left ‘visibly shaken’ after being asked about his estate by Miss Marcantonio – who runs her own ice cream empire.
Roche said her father then faced questions on a daily basis. ‘It was so upsetting. All she was interested in was what money she was going to get,’ she said.
Recalling the days after her father’s first chemotherapy session, Roche said: ‘I stayed in an adjoining room to my dad and checked on him all night long while Angela slept in the furthest bedroom away.’ She said Miss Marcantonio also refused to take time off to care for her partner and once forgot to administer a vital steroid pill.
The court heard how Mr Howey, who died last year aged 71, later wrote his partner out of his will. The two women fell out when it emerged he had signed
A punctured lung and severe bruising
a legal document guaranteeing Miss Marcantonio £163,000 from the sale of his £950,000 mansion in Co Durham.
Jurors were told violence flared when Roche allegedly grabbed her from behind, punched her twice in the face and kicked her to the ground. Miss Marcantonio suffered a punctured lung and severe bruising and was hospitalised for several days.
But Roche yesterday claimed that it was her father’s ‘ hysterical’ partner who instigated the fight after launching a tirade of abuse. ‘She began speaking about money and I got hold of her by the face and said to her, “you greedy b****, he is dying, what more do you want?”’, she said.
Roche said she slapped her rival twice because Miss Marcantonio was in such an agitated and aggressive state.
Roche, from Chester-le- Street, Co Durham, denies grievous bodily harm.
The trial continues.