Wembley man, 23, convicted for horrific murder of Susan Hawkey

A North West London man has been convicted for the horrific murder of Susan Hawkey in her Neasden home. Xyaire Howard, 23, of Press Road, Neasden, subjected the 71-year-old to weeks of violence along with his girlfriend Chelsea Grant.

The couple identified Ms Hawkey as an ideal victim and preyed on her. Howard was found guilty of murder after facing trial at the Old Bailey. Grant was found not guilty for this charge, but pleaded guilty to robbing the victim on multiple occasions before the trial.

The jury heard how Hawkey led a lonely and routine existence. She was elderly, of very small stature and lived alone, with little contact with friends and family. She didn’t leave her home often but when she did, she often took the same route to the shops and the Post Office with her ATM card.

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Grant and Howard pursued her, following her to her home and violently mugging her for her ATM card multiple times in July and August 2022.

Detective Chief Inspector Neil Rawlinson, who led the investigation, said: "This was a brutal murder that followed a sustained campaign of abuse and violence. The victim was a vulnerable adult who was ruthlessly pursued and subjected to unthinkable violence. Grant and Howard are both dangerous individuals, who have thankfully been brought to justice."

The pair first mugged Hawkey on July 27 and were frustrated when she quickly cancelled her bank card. In a further mugging on Verney Road on 22 August, they obtained her bank card and her house keys. The following day they went to her house and again robbed her, but Hawkey fought back against them.

Hawkey did not notify the police about these incidents but did contact her bank to cancel her card and her Housing Association to change the locks on her doors. She also told her neighbours about what happened.

She was last seen alive on September 6. Police attended her home on 26 September after a neighbour raised concerns about her welfare. She was found dead shortly before midday on 26 September. She was lying in the foetal position, with her knees drawn up to her chest. Her hands were tied behind her back with a black shoe-lace and brown parcel tape.

Grant and Howard had been seen walking to and from Hawkey’s home on the afternoon of 6 September. They had obtained her PIN number which they used to begin an extravagant shopping spree, spending thousands of pounds on her bank card, which only ended when they were arrested on September 28 outside McDonalds in Wembley.

As part of the investigation, detectives analysed activity on their mobile phones which contained photos of Hawkey’s ATM cards and search terms relating to transaction limits for ATM cards and the smell of dead bodies.

Chief Superintendent Dan Knowles, local policing command in north-west London, said: “This is a heart-breaking case whereby a vulnerable lady was preyed upon in the most cruel and premeditated of circumstances. Today’s conviction deepens our determination to protect the public and bring offenders to justice at the earliest opportunity.

“I am grateful to the Specialist Crime investigators who have worked tirelessly to bring all evidence in to consideration”.

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