‘Evil’ woman killed her paralysed sister, 48, by leaving her rotting in her own waste surrounded by flies

A WOMAN killed her paralysed sister by leaving her rotting in her own waste surrounded by flies. Former stroke nurse Kelly Neill died from sepsis after being subjected to “toxic” conditions by her sister Michelle Neill. She was found by paramedics “wrapped in a soiled and filthy bed sheet, surrounded by urine, blood and flies”. Kelly had multiple severe bed sores with obvious signs of infection and necrosis with flies and at least one cigarette butt stuck to her leg. Sign up for The Sun newsletter Thank you! She was rushed to St Thomas’s hospital in London and died on October 23, 2022. Neill pleaded guilty to manslaughter but was spared jail and instead handed a three year sentence, suspended for three years. She sobbed in the dock as the victim’s son Jake Neill-Knight, 26, branded her “pure evil” for failing to look after his mother. The court was told Kelly had become paralysed after suffering a stroke in 2018. She lived in “toxic” and “appalling” conditions after her sister took over as sole carer following the death of their mother. At the time of her death, no disability benefits were being received into the household and there had been no visits from a GP or social services for “many months”. Most read in The Sun On October 20, 2022, Neill called an ambulance to the family home in Deptford, South London. Paramedics found Kelly on the floor of the living room in unsanitary conditions, surrounded by dirt, decay and clutter. She was distressed, non-verbal and groaning, the court heard. Describing the conditions of the room, prosecutor Anthony Orchard KC said: “In the front room they were greeted by the smell of excrement, urine, general dirt, and decaying flesh. “The room was in a dreadful state, with clutter everywhere.” A post-mortem found Kelly’s cause of death was sepsis, due to multiple skin ulcers and the previous stroke. The court heard her son Jake had argued with his aunt over Kelly’s care and told her that his mother needed to be in a home. But the defendant disagreed and controlled access the house, the court heard. Jake said he last saw his mum in February 2022 and went to Spain that summer to visit his girlfriend. He returned to the UK after the death of his grandmother. Reading a victim impact statement in court, Mr Neill-Knight described the ongoing and devastating loss of his mother in “harrowing” circumstances. He said his mother had been “stolen” in a “disgusting manner” with her “dignity stripped and her body defiled”. He told the court: “When she first went into hospital before she died, I could hardly recognised her, she was a shell of what used to be, so small, curled up stiff and rigid….The bed sores were horrendous.” Jake described his guilt about what happened, but added: “The guilt we carry because of the choice that Michelle made is unjust. “I can’t even begin to imagine how anybody could walk past a person or ignore someone in my mum’s condition leading up to her death. “I’d help a random stranger if they were in that way, so a family member, no sane person would do what my aunt has done to a member of their family. “My mum wasn’t just someone Michelle cared for or a job she was getting paid for. No, my mum was her only sister, her little sister. “She was supposed to look after her. Protect her. Her own flesh and blood, that she walked past for God knows how many days before calling an ambulance. “How could you do that, see that, smell that, feel that and do nothing? That is pure evil.” Sparing Neill a jail term, Judge Richard Marks KC said the killer, who had anxiety and depression, was “completely unable” to care for her sister and “incapable of seeking help”. He said he would suspend her sentence due to her “personal mitigation” and because she is not likely to reoffend.