'The smiling killers'

A TV costume designer who chased a woman fleeing with her handbag was deliberately run over by the smiling thief and her grinning getaway driver, the Old Bailey heard yesterday.

Liz Sherlock had pursued Jackie Moorehouse out of Euston railway station in London and saw her jump into her boyfriend's waiting Ford Fiesta.

In a desperate bid to prevent the vehicle driving off, 42-year-old Mrs Sherlock flung herself across its bonnet.

Driver Mark Woolley allegedly accelerated 100 yards forward with the woman clinging 'for her life' to its windscreen wipers.

Woolley, 36, then reversed 50 yards and swerved into a kerb before Mrs Sherlock fell on to the road in front of the car, said Richard Horwell, prosecuting.

His way back blocked by a bus, Woolley engaged first gear and drove over her prone body, the jury heard.

'Her body was dragged underneath for a short distance,' Mr Horwell said.

'It was knocked about like a rag doll, as described by one of the witnesses, under that car. Woolley and Moorehouse must have known that they had run over Mrs Sherlock and as they drove away, safe from capture, a witness saw both of them smile.'

Mrs Sherlock was airlifted to hospital but died four hours later. She had fractures of the skull, leg, pelvis and ribs as well as internal injuries.

Her alleged killers dumped the car near the scene and were spotted fleeing arm-in-arm. Three days later police found them attempting to hide beneath a bed in a north London flat belonging to one of 24-year-old Moorehouse's relatives.

In a jacket at the flat detectives discovered a mobile phone that had been in Mrs Sherlock's handbag and keys to the Ford Fiesta.

In another jacket there was a note reading: 'Dear Lord, I have sinned. Forgive me for a terrible sin. God rest the poor woman's soul.'

The jury was told that at the Old Bailey in July, Woolley had pleaded guilty to manslaughter while Moorehouse had admitted stealing the bag.

However, Woolley continued to deny charges of theft and murder, while Moorehouse denied both manslaughter and murder.

As a result, they appeared before a jury yesterday on the first day of a trial expected to last for more than two weeks. Moorehouse and Woolley, of Camden, north London, deny all the charges.

Mr Horwell told the Old Bailey that Mrs Sherlock and her husband Peter were at Euston on April 16 - Easter Monday - on their way to visit Mrs Sherlock's father in Lancashire for his birthday. Because they were in good time, they decided to go for a coffee.

Shortly before the Sherlocks arrived, Woolley had dropped off Moorehouse who wandered around the concourse for 40 minutes before entering the cafe where the Sherlocks were having coffee, and sitting at the next table.

Mrs Sherlock's bag was on the floor, and within minutes Moorehouse stole it.

Mrs Sherlock realised within seconds what had happened and 'with courage and determination' ran after Moorehouse.

'This happened so quickly and so unexpectedly that Mr Sherlock was unaware that his wife had gone not to seek help but to give chase and so he remained at their table looking after their luggage,' said Mr Horwell.

The dramatic chase was captured on CCTV cameras, and was shown yesterday in court. Mrs Sherlock's mother Doris and father Joseph were in the public gallery. Mrs Sherlock could be seen less than ten feet behind Moorehouse, running as fast as she could.

The film included footage of the moment at which the prosecution claims the car's wheels went over Mrs Sherlock.

'You can see a wheel on the car go up and the car drives away leaving something behind, the body of Mrs Sherlock,' said Mr Horwell.

The Fiesta was found by police just 200 metres away. It had been abandoned with two blown-out tyres as a result of hitting the kerb and with a smashed windscreen caused when a fireman who saw what was happening had thrown his helmet at the vehicle.

The jury will today hear evidence from Mr Sherlock, 48, a computer programmer from Chiswick, West London, who married his wife in


She joined the BBC in 1983 and worked with Rolf Harris and Ben Elton, as well as designing costumes for Last of the Summer Wine, before going freelance.

The hearing continues.