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Belfast Man Spends £6,000 On Domino's Pizza Using Dead Neighbour's Card

Belfast Man Spends £6,000 On Domino's Pizza Using Dead Neighbour's Card

Robert Sharkey pleaded guilty and will be sentenced in October

Tom Wood

Tom Wood

A 24-year-old man has pleaded guilty to taking his dead neighbour's bank card and running up huge bills, including spending nearly £6,000 on Domino's pizza.

Robert Sharkey, who now lives in Bangor, Northern Ireland, broke into the house of his then-neighbour, Marie Conlon, in West Belfast in August 2015.

He discovered the body of Ms Conlon, but instead of reporting this to the authorities, he stole her bank card and used it to pay for a litany of things including groceries, bills, and - of course - takeaway pizza.

Sixty-eight-year-old Ms Conlon was not discovered until more than two years later, in October 2017. The last time she had been seen alive was in January 2015.

She was eventually found at her Larkspur Rise flat, at which point Sharkey's crimes were revealed.

Sharkey was arrested and charged with preventing the lawful burial of a corpse. He pleaded guilty at Belfast Crown Court yesterday.

Robert Sharkey
Robert Sharkey

He also pleaded guilty to breaking and entering Conlon's house, stealing her property that included tools, £50 cash, her debit card, and - bizarrely - a coffee mug.

He also admitted to fraud on six counts for using her bank card without proper authority.

The exact amount spent on Domino's pizza orders is staggering. He ran up £5,988.39 in food deliveries. He also charged £3,279.80 onto Ms Conlon's card at Sainsbury's supermarket.

He paid off council bills, a bill to the Department of Financial Land and Property Service, and energy bills. On top of that, he bought £1,030 of credit from O2 for his mobile phone.

After admitting to the charges, he will return to the court on 12 October, when he will be sentenced. He has been released on bail until the final charge is decided.

PA

Judge Geoffrey Miller QC told Sharkey: "I am releasing you on continuing bail,

"You should re-appear on 24 September, when the court will receive a further update on the outstanding count."

A statement from Marie Conlon's family at the time of her discovery said that they were ""shocked and heartbroken to learn about the loss of our beloved sister".

The statement continued: "The tragic circumstances of her death make it all the more difficult to comprehend and accept.

"Marie was very much loved by her family and will be mourned greatly. She was a very independent person.

"Numerous attempts had been made to contact her in person, and by other means, over the course of the past two years, but at no point were suspicions raised that she had died."

Featured Image Credit: PA

Topics: Food, UK News, Northern Ireland, crime, Fraud