Headless body found with Bible quote and rope, jury hears

A woman's headless body was found near the coast with a quote from the Bible written on a scrap of paper in her jacket pocket, a court has heard.

Mee Kuen Chong, 67, from Wembley, north west London, was discovered in woodland in Salcombe, Devon, in June 2021.

Jemma Mitchell, 38, from Willesden, north west London, allegedly killed and decapitated her friend Ms Chong, before forging a will in her own favour.

Ms Chong's head was found days later, a pathologist told the Old Bailey.

The jury was previously shown CCTV footage of Ms Mitchell dragging a suitcase from Ms Chong's home, which the prosecution claims contained the body.

It is alleged Ms Mitchell hired a car and went on a 500-mile (800km) round trip to Devon to dispose of Ms Chong's remains.

The court heard how Ms Chong, also known as Deborah, had a history of mental ill health dating back to 2015, when she was noted in GP records as having schizo-affective disorder and acute stress.

According to the records, she suffered an episode of mania with psychotic symptoms in 2017 but by the next year her condition had stabilised and she was discharged by her community mental health team, the jury was told.

In May 2021, records indicate she had paranoid schizophrenia.

The court heard the remains of Ms Chong, described as a "devout Christian", were found with her handbag containing a length of rope, which the prosecution alleges matches some found at Ms Mitchell's home.

The body was also found with the business card of an evangelical church and scraps of paper bearing excerpts from the Bible, jurors were told.

The court previously heard the prosecution allege that Ms Mitchell had killed Ms Chong because she wanted to get hundreds of thousands of pounds to pay for repairs to her home.

Ms Mitchell, a former osteopath, has denied murder and the trial continues.

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