Man sentenced to 2 years 4 months for mother in freezer

A man has been sentenced to prison for storing his deceased mother's body in a freezer for nearly three years while fraudulently claiming over 78,000 pounds in her benefits. Christopher Phillips, 60, was sentenced to two years and four months imprisonment on Monday, August 3, 2026, at Merthyr Tydfil Crown Court after pleading guilty to preventing the lawful burial of his mother, Silvia Phillips, 89, and to two counts of fraud.

Phillips had left work to become his mother's full-time carer in the months before she died on March 8, 2023, at their home in Porthcawl, South Wales. The cause of her death remains unknown. Following her death, Phillips purchased a chest freezer and stored her body inside the living room of the property. The body was discovered by police officers in February 2026 after concerns for her welfare were raised by her medical practice.

The court heard that Phillips received a total of 78,190.92 pounds in state pension, pension credit, attendance allowance, winter fuel payments, cost-of-living payments, and housing benefit payments, which would have ceased had the death been reported. He failed to notify the Department for Work and Pensions and Bridgend County...