Pharmacy worker who poisoned partner jailed

Lily Cartier, of Felbridge, Surrey, has been sentenced to seven years in prison

A pharmacy worker who poisoned her partner for months and used his bank cards while he was in hospital has been jailed.

Lily Cartier, of Felbridge, Surrey, stole drugs from her work and put them in food and drink she had made for John Sharrard.

The 53-year-old was found guilty of two counts of administering a poison to cause grievous bodily harm and two counts of fraud.

At Kingston Crown Court, she was sentenced to seven years in prison.

In February 2017, Mr Sharrard, 71, began to feel unwell and was referred for medical tests.

The cause of his symptoms was unconfirmed, though doctors suspected he had Parkinson’s disease due to difficulties he was having with muscle spasms and his mental faculties slowing.

After collapsing twice, his brother raised concerns to Surrey Police that Cartier, who was living with Mr Sharrard, may have been poisoning him.

Tests found warfarin in Mr Sharrard’s blood - an anticoagulant drug that could lead to serious bleeding. A hair sample also detected haloperidol, an antipsychotic drug.

Mr Sharrard confirmed he had not knowingly taken either drug and his brother shared concerns that Cartier had access to drugs through her work.

'Appalling, callous woman'

In November 2017, Cartier was arrested and haloperidol was found in her handbag, with warfarin found later in her bedside cabinet.

During the investigation, several transactions were found to have been made on Mr Sharrard’s bank cards without his permission while he was in hospital.

They included purchases of jewellery and clothes as well as withdrawals totalling more than £6,000.

Since Cartier’s arrest, Mr Sharrard passed away due to an unrelated medical issue.

In an impact statement, Mr Sharrard’s brother said he had become “incoherent”.

“This appalling, callous woman put so little value on my brother’s life. It is hard to believe that a human being could treat another in this cruel way,” he said.

Det Con Kieran Gamble, from Surrey Police, added: “She was planned and meticulous as she carried out her crimes and showed no remorse for John’s suffering when he lay in hospital.”