Woman brutally kills frail 97-year-old man in horror attack inside his own home
Forty-four-year-old Tandy Swinton had previously targeted William Lambie, 97, who weighed just five stone when he died, threatening to stab him with a knife in 2020
A woman who targeted vulnerable elderly people, eventually killing a frail 97-year-old pensioner during an attack at his home has been acquitted of murder.
Tandy Swinton, 44, was cleared of murdering William Lambie but found guilty of the lesser charge of culpable homicide following the assault on the man she had previously preyed upon. Swinton had demanded cash from Mr Lambie - who weighed just five stone when he died - and shoved him, causing him to tumble to the ground and suffer serious injuries in the fatal attack at his flat in Dryburgh Gardens, Dundee, on April 15 last year.
Mr Lambie had surgery at the city's Ninewells Hospital before being moved to another hospital for rehabilitation, but later went to a care home for end-of-life treatment before dying on May 26 last year. Swinton appeared for trial at the High Court in Edinburgh, charged with murdering the pensioner, but a jury today delivered a verdict finding her guilty of causing his death.
Defence solicitor advocate Iain Paterson KC said that following the decision, a prison sentence of "great significance" would be handed down to Swinton.
After the jury delivered the verdict, they learnt that Swinton had racked up 26 previous convictions, including for drugs, theft, shoplifting, breaking bail conditions, violating anti-social behaviour laws and assault and robbery, reports the Daily Record. Mr Lambie had previously fallen victim to Swinton when she attacked him at his residence on April 20 in 2020, threatening him with a knife and vowing to stab and kill him before stealing £100 from him.
She received a three-year prison sentence. She was subsequently put away for 18 months after forcing another pensioner, Margaret Chalmers, then aged 81, who also resided in Dryburgh Gardens, to accompany her to a bank and withdraw £300 for her on November 11 in 2022.
Throughout the proceedings, the court heard friends of Mr Lambie speak warmly of him. They informed the jury how the devoted Christian would recite Shakespeare and served as an inspiration to fellow members of the Jehovah's Witnesses in Dundee.
The court also heard that he cherished simple pleasures such as visiting his local Greggs with his friends for a sausage roll and a cappuccino. At the time of his death, he weighed five stone and stood five feet one inch tall. "By the verdict of the jury, you have been found guilty of the culpable homicide of William Lambie," the trial judge, Lord Harrower, told Swinton.
"I am well aware that no sentence of this court can alleviate the suffering currently being felt by those closest to Mr Lambie. I am concerned, not least the extensive record of previous convictions which has been tendered this morning, that your offending has increased in severity in most recent years."
The judge mentioned the previous offences against Mr Lambie and Miss Chalmers, who has since passed away, stating that her criminal behaviour had escalated to become "much more serious". He informed the jury: "It has been a very serious case and, in some respects, a very distressing one."
Lord Harrower adjourned the case for a background report on Swinton, who was held on remand. She is set to be sentenced at the High Court in Glasgow later this year.