Family accuses ex-pole dancer of arranging to have husband killed to inherit his cash... but she denies it all
place next April in Bristol, is expected to hear that Ukrainian police no longer think he was murdered.
But the family are pursuing their case, and legal papers say it is their “contention that the deceased was wilfully and deliberately killed” and Ms Ziuzina “was complicit”. The family think Ms Ziuzina arranged the murder “with the assistance of a person or persons” unknown.
The family allege in the court papers that Ms Ziuzina wed Mr Pring “for his money, took advantage of him financially” and “caused his death to rid herself of him and for her own financial benefit when it was likely the marriage would otherwise have soon come to an end”.
Ms Ziuzina vehemently denies the allegations, stating in her defence papers that the family had “little personal knowledge of the relationship” and that Mrs Pring did not even attend their wedding.
Her husband was “well educated” and “sophisticated” and “perfectly capable of making judgements” about her character and whether she was “marrying him for his money rather than because of love”.
Denying the marriage was coming to an end, she said Mr Pring had gone to Kiev to celebrate their anniversary, her birthday and Valentine’s Day, and they had had a “very enjoyable evening” and were looking forward to a skiing holiday.
Her QC John McLinden previously told the court: “She wants me to say publicly the family are completely wrong in their belief.” Ms Ziuzina’s solicitor John Cabot has confirmed she will give evidence and be cross examined at the High Court.
She was dubbed the Black Widow after a UK coroner ruled in 2017 that Mr Pring was “unlawfully killed”. She took legal action and the finding was quashed at the High Court eight weeks later.
Of the new High Court case, Chief Master Matthew Marsh said in a pre-trial judgment: “The circumstances of Barry Pring’s death are highly controversial.”
He said a central issue in the family’s claim was Ms Ziuzina gave an “untrue and false” account of her movements in the hours after Mr Pring’s death.
Rather than returning to the couple’s flat in Kiev, as she claimed, the family allege she went to Shpitki “in the aftermath of the incident in order to meet the driver” of the vehicle that killed Mr Pring.
Chief Master Marsh referred to a “surprisingly forthright” letter sent by the General Prosecutor of Ukraine in 2012, stating that the widow “had given false testimony in the pre-trial investigation”.
The prosecutor said she had been in “Shpitki Village for unknown reasons” from 3am to 5am on February 17, 2008.
Ms Ziuzina denies going to the village in the aftermath of her husband’s death.
In an interview in 2017, Ms Ziuzina denied involvement and said: “The death of my husband was a tremendous shock.”