Alleged fentanyl killer posed as theatre producer called Jenny, court told

A man accused of poisoning a married couple with the opioid painkiller fentanyl and rewriting their will, created a fake identity as a theatre producer called Jenny to gain the trust of their daughter, it is alleged.

Luke D’Wit, 34, developed a web of false identities, including a solicitor, to convince family members that the will he had written was real.

D’Wit is accused of murdering Stephen, 61, and Carol Baxter, 64, whom the court heard he had worked for and befriended.

Chelmsford Crown Court previously heard he had created a false identity of a doctor from Florida, and a “support group of false identities who were also sufferers of Hashimoto’s”, the thyroid condition from which Mrs Baxter suffered.

One of those characters had a sister called Jenny, who claimed to be a theatre producer who could help the couple’s daughter, Ellie Baxter, 22, with her career as a vocalist, jurors were told.

Jenny was a trusted person, I thought that she was there to help, I thought she was a real person

In text messages, Jenny asked Ms Baxter to send her recordings of herself singing, which she then recorded at her parents house with the help of D’Wit using his microphone.

“Jenny was setting up a new business and needed a vocalist,” Ms Baxter told the court.

The songs Jenny requested included Happy Birthday and I’d Do Anything from the musical Oliver!, the court heard.

She told Ms Baxter she would arrange for a recording session and vocal coaching for her in London, the court was told.

“I can’t wait to get started and meet you in London,” Jenny said in a text to Ms Baxter, the court heard.

They exchanged multiple messages a day, including childcare arrangements and dietary preferences for the planned visit, it is alleged.

Ms Baxter broke down in court as she said it was “embarrassing” to have believed the deception.

“Jenny was a trusted person, I thought that she was there to help, I thought she was a real person,” she added.

They continued to speak after Ms Baxter’s parents died, the court heard.

Jenny responded to news of their deaths with a message saying “Oh no my darling sweetheart I’m so sorry”.

Prosecutor Tracy Ayling KC previously told the court that D’Wit, using false identities, made recommendations to Carol Baxter with “no clinical basis”, adding that the identities were “created by Luke on his phone to manipulate” her.

He told her to “keep contact less regular, why not take your family out weekly, one at a time”, adding: “You have a serious illness and you need to be sensible… seeing family, it’s that simple,” the court heard.

Ms Baxter told the court that the day before she found her parents dead, she was travelling past their house with Mr D’Wit when he told her she should “go in and check them”.

She refused, telling D’Wit that everything looked normal and she did not want to “get a bollocking”, and that she would check them in the morning, the court heard.

D’Wit denies murdering the couple.

The trial continues.