Village shattered by almshouse murder
Suspect held over death of grandmother who tended church roses
THE body of a 71-year- old churchgoer has been found in an almshouse home in a quiet village – and a man arrested on suspicion of murder.
Villagers in Flamstead, Hertfordshire, expressed shock at the death of Christine Ford, a popular figure with a passion for roses who tended the gardens of the local church.
She was found with ‘fatal injuries’ when police broke down the door of an almshouse property neighbouring hers after her family were unable to contact her at the weekend. They then issued a public appeal for Brian Coote, 64.
A man was arrested yesterday and was last night being questioned on suspicion of murder. He was tracked down to the village of Caddington, near Luton.
Mrs Ford, known as Chrissy, is believed to have moved to Flamstead almost ten years ago to be near her family after separating from her husband on the Isle of Wight. She was often seen walking around the village with her grandchildren Ben and Millie who lived nearby with her son Mark, 42, and his wife Alison, 41.
Neighbours said she would often be seen in the gardens of the village church tending the flowers and paying special attention to the peach coloured roses, which were her passion.
Tom Sander, vicar of St Leonard’s church, 100 yards from Mrs Ford’s home, said of the former hairdresser and carer: ‘She would attend church and help with the flowers inside, but regularly looked after the roses in the churchyard. She was a very keen gardener and a very nice person.
‘When you met her, you came away afterwards feeling better for having seen and spoken to her – she was that sort of person.’
The church is holding a two-hour vigil for Mrs Ford tonight so villagers can lay flowers and light candles in her memory.
The almshouse in which she lived was built in the 1600s and is run by a trust. Such homes are traditionally given to people who have local connections to a village and who may have fallen on difficult times.
Mr Coote had moved into his onebedroom almshouse home after the death of his mother, with whom he had lived in the village for many years. He was apparently made homeless after his family home was repossessed and slept in his car before moving into the almshouse.
Villager Gayle Firmin said: ‘I think he had been working as a mechanic but I didn’t really know him. Nobody can believe what has happened.’
Mrs Ford’s best friend Carole Morris, 65, said she was ‘a lovely person’ and she could not believe she had been murdered. Sally Morrice, 59, who works as a teaching assistant at the local school, said: ‘I am trying to come to terms with what happened. I know her grandchildren and they adored Chrissy. The whole village is in shock.’
Mrs Ford’s body was found shortly before 8pm on Saturday after a call was made to police.
A spokesman said: ‘ Officers forced entry to an address where they sadly discovered the 71-yearold’s body. She had suffered fatal injuries and was pronounced dead at the scene.’ A post-mortem was due to take place yesterday.
The almshouses are run by the Saunders Sebright trust, which takes its name from a wealthy family who had them built in the 1600s for people who had fallen on hard times.
‘We are all in shock’