Woman slapped brother’s girlfriend in row over money
AGRIEVING daughter fat-shamed his brother’s girlfriend, slapped her in the face and falsely branded him a ‘’rapist’’ during a doorstep confrontation over a £30,000 legal battle for their late father’s will, a court heard.
Claire Oldfield, 46, got drunk and drove to the home of John Friel before banging on his front door and demanding money she believed she was owed after paying over £10,000 for their father’s funeral.
Mr Friel was not at home but his partner Keeley Murphy, a former school assistant, opened the door in her pyjamas to try to calm Oldfield only to be branded “fat and podgy” before being punched in the face.
Oldfield also fat-shamed Miss Murphy’s children as they looked out of a bedroom window before she scratched the victim’s Mercedes car with a key.
Oldfield, who lives in Gawsworth and who cares full-time for her adult sister who suffers with cerebral
palsy, was later arrested but claimed: “I haven’t done it - I didn’t do it, she attacked me”.
She admitted calling Miss Murphy ‘’fat’’ but insisted there was a catfight between the two women adding: ‘’There’s a dispute going on over the money which I paid for my dad’s funeral.
“I went round to my brother’s house to tell them I wanted my money as the funeral cost £10,500 - they owe me money for it but they’re refusing to pay.
“She answered the door and told me my brother wasn’t in and I told her I wanted my money - but she told me: ‘I wasn’t f..king getting it’ and there was a shouting match.’’
A breath test showed she was two and a half times the alcohol limit for driving.
The violent confrontation on July 28 last year occurred after a bitter family feud between Oldfield and Mr Friel following the death of their businessman father, Carl Friel, who passed away aged 75 in 2015.
Oldfield had believed she was executor of her father’s will and paid for his funeral in the hope of reclaiming the money from his estate but she subsequently discovered her brother was in charge of discharging the money, JPs in Stockport heard.
After consulting lawyers, she drank vodka and Red Bulls at home then went round in her VW Carravelle people carrier to have it out with her brother.
Miss Murphy, a mother of three who was at home at Congleton with her children, said: ‘’I heard banging at my door and Claire Oldfield who’s sort of my sisterin-law was stood there and saying: “I want my f..king money”. It was my understanding Claire wanted the money from her father’s estate and John is the executor.
“She had thought she was the executor for 18 months before John found out he was the executor at the time he passed away. I just told her it’s got nothing to do with me but she just started to verbally abuse me and my appearance.
“She called me ‘fat’ and ‘podgy’ and my daughter came into the porch and she was calling her ‘fat’ too. She was drunk, she was irate and she was laughing as if it was a joke.
“She was very loud. I could tell she was drunk by the way she was walking up and down the drive.
“I told her to go away and shut the door and I rang the police and told them. Then a neighbour came and knocked on the door and I got changed out of my pyjamas to go outside and Claire was there again. She was ranting and raving then she hit me in the face with the palm of her hand.
“She was asking me where her “rapist brother” was. She was shouting up at the girls - they were upstairs at the front bedroom window. She was calling them both ‘fat’ and they were telling her to go away.
“She then hit me in the face with her left hand, hitting me on my top lip and my nose. She then grabbed my left arm and I went to grab the inside door of the porch and she hit me in the face.
“She was very aggressive with me and my children and yet I was not aware she was owed money. I was just in total shock when it happened at the way she had behaved.’’
Oldfield denied assault by beating and criminal damage but was found guilty after a trial. She admitted drink driving.
She told JPs: “They had been ignoring my solicitor’s letters and were not acknowledging the matter in relation to an ongoing dispute over my dads estate.
“I had instructed a solicitor who was sending them letters and they were being ignored. So I asked for my brother and she said ‘he’s not here what do you want.’
“I said he wasn’t responding to my solicitor’s letters and that I wanted to sort out the money for my dads funeral and inheritance. But to this she said ‘you’re not getting it, fuck off.’
“I wasn’t being aggressive or angry. I wasn’t very happy that she hit me. I didn’t slap her or key her car.’’
She added: ‘’I’m not on good terms with John or Keeley at the moment, no. I’ve now spoken with solicitors who say we were to go to court over this it would take £30,000 out of the estate and that’s why I wanted to come and talk to them both.
“I didn’t come to my brothers house to take matters into my own hands. I just came to ask why they weren’t responding to my solicitors’ letters.
“I had been drinking vodka and Red Bulls the night before with a friend but I had waited over 12 hours and thought it would be out of my system.
“I was calm when I went round. I wasn’t happy after Keeley punched me in the face and verbally attacked me. I just came to sort out the cost of my father’s funeral and his inheritance.”
Defence lawyer Shirley Fitton said: “Following the tragic death of Mrs Oldfield’s father, there has been an ongoing dispute over his estate.
“It’s so sad when people fall out over money. Very sad.
“Mrs Oldfield accepts that she went to see her brother because her letters via a solicitor were being ignored and she wanted to discuss the situation.
“She accepts that she became angry and upset but at the start she was calm. She wanted to find out from her brother why there had been a lack of response to her letters.
“Her brother was absent and the argument arose with his partner. She was singled out as the villain of the piece from the beginning.”
Oldfield will be sentenced at a later date.