Convicted of keeping woman as slave for 25 years in Tewkesbury

A woman with learning difficulties has been found guilty of holding another woman captive for 25 years and using her as a slave.

Mandy Wixon, a mother of 10, hired a vulnerable woman to clean her dirty and overcrowded home in Tewkesbury, Gloucestershire, leaving her with a life in pieces.

Washing-up liquid was poured down the victim’s throat, bleach was sprayed on her face and her head was repeatedly shaved against her will.

At Gloucester Crown Court, Judge Ian Lawrie said the case had a “Dickensian quality” as Wixon had been found guilty of false imprisonment, requiring a person to do forced or compulsory labour, and assault occasioning actual bodily harm.

Due to reporting restrictions the BBC is now only able to report details of the case.

The court heard that the woman –

whom the BBC is calling K – was born into a troubled family and when she was about 16 in 1996, she was handed over to Vixen, who had loose connections to her family.

Now aged 40, Kay was found by police on 15 March 2021 after one of Vixen’s sons raised concerns for her welfare.

The court heard that Kay was regularly beaten and was also hit with a broom handle, causing her teeth to be broken.

Her food was limited by Vixen and she could not leave the house and was forced to wash clothes in secret at night.

Authorities described Kay’s bedroom as resembling a “prison cell”, along with other bedrooms that were disorganized and dirty.

At times, as many as 13 people lived in the house.

Like many people in the house, Kay had lost many of her teeth due to poor dental hygiene.

When police discovered her, her lips and face were bruised from being splashed with bleach, and her feet and ankles had large calluses from constantly scrubbing floors on her hands and knees.

Kay told officers: “I don’t want to live here. I don’t feel safe. Mandy hits me all the time. I don’t like it.”

Doctors found that the victim was malnourished, while a dentist said she may have been in pain for years due to untreated infections and abscesses.

Det Sergeant Alex Pockett said: “When police arrived, the victim had her head down, it was clear she was extremely frightened.”

Sam Jones, prosecuting, told the jury: “By the late 1990s it appears the woman disappeared into a black hole. There was not a single meeting of which any record was left or even a single sighting of her outside the house.”

Since being rescued, K is now living with a foster family, going to college and on vacations abroad.

Wixon was released on conditional bail and will be sentenced on March 12.

As she left the court she was asked what she had to say to her victim and she replied: “Not much.”

Asked if he was sorry, he said, “No. I never did it.”

When she stopped to light a cigarette, reporters asked if she was a “monster”, and she replied: “Say what you think.”

Since being rescued, K is now living with a foster family, going to college and on vacations abroad.

Det Cons Emma Jackson, of Gloucestershire Police, said she was “thriving” and living a healthy life.

Senior prosecutor Laura Burgess, of the Crown Prosecution Service, said: “The progress she has made since being removed from this oppressive environment is testament to her strength.

“Our thoughts remain with her as she continues to rebuild her life, and I hope seeing her get justice today can bring her some comfort.”