Children's author Helen Bailey 'drugged for months then suffocated', court hears

Arrangements had recently been made for her partner to obtain the house and 'substantial financial advantage' in the event of Ms Bailey's death, jury hears

Ms Bailey's body was discovered by police beneath the grounds of her Royston home in July, alongside that of her dog (Hertfordshire Police)

Children’s author Helen Bailey was plied with sedatives by her partner for several months before he "probably suffocated" her, a court has heard.

Ms Bailey's body was discovered by police beneath the grounds of her Royston home in July, alongside that of her dog.

The 51-year-old writer, who wrote a number of popular books for adolescents starring the character Electra Brown, went missing two months before, in April, when she was last seen walking her dog.

Ms Bailey’s partner, Ian Stewart, was charged with her murder, as well as perverting the course of justice for allegedly reporting her as missing to the police and hiding her body and preventing lawful burial.

Mr Stewart, 56, to whom Ms Bailey was engaged, denies all accusations.

St Albans Crown Court heard the couple had met online following the death of Ms Bailey's husband, John Sinfield in 2011, and moved in together a year after they met, buying the house in Royston for around £1.5 million.

They had made arrangements for Mr Stewart to obtain the house and “substantial financial advantage” in the event of Ms Bailey's death before the wedding, the jury heard.

Ms Bailey was said to be “very successful” and worth around £4 million, earning around £5,000 a month in royalties from her books.

Opening the trial, prosecutor Stuart Trimmer QC said: “The crown say this was simply a long-planned, deliberate killing, a cynically executed murder that had money as its driving motive.”

Mr Trimmer said Mr Stewart had been giving Ms Bailey sleeping pills for several months before killing her on 11 April 2016, adding that he “killed her, probably by suffocation whilst she was sedated by the drugs he administered”.

A drug used to treat insomnia, Zoplicone, was found in her system, which had been prescribed to Mr Stewart, the court was told.

It is alleged that a ”charade“ followed the murder, as Mr Stewart sent texts to his partner's phone, despite allegedly having possession of it himself, and supported a media campaign to trace her.

He paid for posters and flyers and attended a dog walk organised by a campaign group called ”Where is Helen Bailey?“, the court heard.

Mr Stewart is then alleged to have “casually obstructed” the police investigation, lying to officers who were aiding the search, as well as going on holiday to Spain in June 2016.

Ms Bailey's dog, Boris, was also killed by Stewart at some stage to add credence to the theory that Ms Bailey had gone missing as she was “devoted” to him, Mr Trimmer said.

The trial continues.

Additional reporting by PA