Lucy Rees, 34, and her boyfriend, George Maben, 45, by whom she was pregnant, had been out for a drink together on Tuesday, March 24, 2009, before returning to the home of Lucy's mother, Maureen Cosgrove, 65, in the afternoon. Maben, originally from Ireland but known as Geordie by family members and friends, was not fond of encounters with Maureen because he was well aware the widowed mother of four and doting grandmother of seven did not care much for him. Nonetheless, he accompanied Lucy back to her mother's £700,000 house located in the affluent Surrey commuter community of Carshalton Beeches, just south of Greater London.
Map of England with London and Carshalton Beeches locators
Located about 10 miles south-southwest of Charing Cross, the traditional center of the London metropolis, Carshalton Beeches is an area dotted with springs and ponds but still easily accessible to London by car or public transportation. Maureen Cosgrove had left her four-bedroom home that morning for an appointment with her dentist about a mile away. When she returned home that morning to her mostly crime-free neighborhood, she had likely not expected an encounter with someone in her kitchen whose intent was to harm her. Similarly, as Lucy made her way down the quiet tree-lined street of detached homes accompanied by Maben, she did not expect to find the scene which awaited her.
Lucy entered the house first, followed by Maben. Seeing that the patio door was open, she went to close it. Then she saw her mother lying on her back on the floor, her arms sprawled at her sides and her eyes closed. They could both see that she was not breathing.
