Ben Field (murderer)

Benjamin Luke Field is a British man who murdered retired teacher and author Peter Farquhar.[1][2][3][4]

Murder and conviction

Field was unemployed and was a voluntary churchwarden at his local church.[5]

Field was arrested in January 2018.[6] Following his arrest, psychiatrists diagnosed Field as having narcissistic personality disorder or psychopathic personality disorder.[7][8]

On 9 August 2019, Field was convicted of the 2015 murder of author Peter Farquhar, but acquitted of the attempted murder of Farquhar's neighbour Ann Moore-Martin, who died of natural causes on 12 May 2017. As part of the same trial Field had pleaded guilty to charges of fraud and burglary against the same two victims.[9]

In October 2019, he was sentenced to life imprisonment, with a minimum term of 36 years.[10]

Appeals

He lost a first appeal against his conviction in March 2021.[11] In January 2022 he appealed a second time against his conviction.[12]

In July 2023, it was reported that Field had applied for the Criminal Cases Review Commission to investigate whether to refer his case to the Court of Appeal.[13]

Payment of damages

In August 2023, Field paid more than £124,000 to the families of Farquhar and Moore-Martin, after he was ordered to sell his flat in Towcester following a court confiscation order.[14]

The Channel 4 documentary series Catching a Killer recounted the acts of Field in the fifth instalment of the first series. The 90-minute episode, titled 'A Diary from the Grave', aired on 12 January 2020.[15]

In 2023, the circumstances surrounding Field's crimes were adapted into a BBC TV serial called The Sixth Commandment, with the actor Éanna Hardwicke playing Field. Timothy Spall plays Farquhar and Anne Reid plays neighbour Ann Moore-Martin.[16][17]

References
  1. "Maids Moreton: How murderer Ben Field fooled a church". 18 October 2019 – via www.bbc.co.uk.
  2. "Maids Moreton: Ben Field thought he would 'get away with it'". 9 August 2019 – via www.bbc.co.uk.
  3. "The Sixth Commandment: The killer who duped victims into rewriting wills". 19 July 2023 – via www.bbc.co.uk.
  4. "What happened to Ben Field, the killer at the centre of The Sixth Commandment?". The Independent. 18 July 2023.
  5. Smith, David James; Bellotti, Alex (21 July 2021). "'Killer church warden was no ordinary psychopath - as his chilling diaries show'". mirror.
  6. "Murder inquiry: 'Church warden and magician' arrested". Sky News.
  7. https://www.oxfordmail.co.uk/news/23588204.bbc-murder-drama-explores-ben-field-maids-moreton-killing/
  8. Smith, David James; Bellotti, Alex (21 July 2021). "'Killer church warden was no ordinary psychopath - as his chilling diaries show'". mirror.
  9. "Maids Moreton: Ben Field murdered author Peter Farquhar". 9 August 2019 – via www.bbc.co.uk.
  10. "Maids Moreton: Ben Field jailed for author's murder". 18 October 2019 – via www.bbc.co.uk.
  11. "Maids Moreton: Benjamin Field loses murder conviction appeal". 18 March 2021 – via www.bbc.co.uk.
  12. "Maids Moreton: Benjamin Field in second bid to overturn murder conviction". 28 January 2022 – via www.bbc.co.uk.
  13. Sixth Commandment killer Ben Field could launch fresh court appeal
  14. "Maids Moreton murderer made to sell flat to pay £124k to victims' families". BBC News. Retrieved 23 August 2023.
  15. Craig, David. "Catching A Killer: Viewers react to 'truly frightening' C4 documentary on Peter Farquhar's murder". radiotimes.com. Radio Times. Retrieved 28 August 2023.
  16. "Where is Ben Field – of new true crime series The Sixth Commandment – now?". Cosmopolitan. 17 January 2023.
  17. "First look at BBC murder drama Sixth Commandment: Who was killer Ben Field?". Oxford Mail. 14 June 2023.
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