Son kept mother's body in freezer for three years, claimed £78,000 pension; jailed in UK

Christopher Phillips, 60, from Porthcawl, Wales, was jailed for two years and four months for concealing his mother's body and fraudulently claiming £78,190.92 in pension and benefits.

Phillips placed his mother Sylvia Phillips' body in a chest freezer he bought two days after her death in March 2023; it was found in February 2026 during a welfare check.

He claimed his mother had moved to London, but police found her body wrapped in a leopard-print blanket with roses and a birthday card in the freezer.

Phillips continued collecting her prescriptions and lied to medical staff and police, saying she didn't need appointments or blood tests.

The post-mortem couldn't determine cause of death due to freezing; there was no evidence of suspicious death.