Pensioner allegedly murdered in mobility scooter theft outside Tesco “lived in sheltered housing destroyed by drug gangs and prostitutes,” a neighbor claimed.
Neil Shadwick, 63, was found unresponsive and without his scooter in the supermarket car park in Stroud, Gloucestershire, shortly before 6am on Sunday.
The pensioner, who was battling Parkinson’s disease, was rushed to Gloucestershire Royal Hospital by paramedics but died later the same day.
Now his neighbor says drug gangs and prostitutes were targeting adults in the community.
Neil Shadwick ‘lived in sheltered accommodation destroyed by drug gangs and prostitutes’, neighbor alleged
A security video clip showed a man believed to be Mr Shadwick driving to a cash machine with a woman in a long gray coat on the back of her scooter.
Mental health worker Rob Marsh, 60, told The Times prostitutes were following men from the Tesco Express and trying to make small talk. He also claimed that a drug gang is “hello” to an alleged “vulnerable adult” by taking his house as a base for drug trafficking.
Mr Marsh’s claims come as police have appealed for more information about the attack.
Security camera video showed a man believed to be Mr Shadwick driving to a cash machine with a woman in a long gray coat on the back of her scooter.
The man carefully got off the scooter before withdrawing cash, while the woman stood impatiently. The couple then got back on the scooter and drove off.
The victim was found less than a mile from the cash machine on Sunday morning, while the scooter was found abandoned by a member of the public on Bisley Old Road more than a mile away.
Police believe it was the subject of theft and have asked for information from anyone who saw the mobility scooter being used in the Paganhill area of the city between 2am and 4am on Sunday.
Authorities have yet to officially identify the victim as Mr Shadwick.
The man believed to be Mr Shadwick is pictured at a cash machine while the unnamed woman stands a few feet away and looks agitated
The woman walks up to Mr Shadwick as he pulls it off before they both get back on the scooter and drive off
The woman in the gray coat climbed onto the back of the scooter and the man believed to be Mr Shadwick drove off
Officers then arrested a 40-year-old woman on suspicion of robbery and murder. Magistrates yesterday granted Gloucestershire Police extra time to question him.
A spokesperson for the force said: “Magistrates this morning granted a further warrant of detention to a woman who had been arrested on suspicion of murder.
‘This means the woman, 40, can remain in police custody for a further 36 hours following her arrest in connection with the death of a man in Stroud over the weekend.
“Police were called shortly before 6am on Sunday to a report that a man had been found unresponsive in the parking lot of the Tesco hypermarket on Stratford Road.
“The man, in his 60s, had been found without his mobility scooter which he uses for transport.
“He was then taken to Gloucestershire Royal Hospital by paramedics and died later that day. His next of kin has been notified.
A spokesperson added: ‘The Major Crimes Investigation Team continues to investigate the circumstances surrounding the incident and anyone with information that could help is asked to contact the police.
“Anyone with information about what happened is asked to contact the police online by completing the following form quoting Incident 78 of January 22. You can also call the police on 101.
“Information can be submitted anonymously by calling the independent crime-fighting charity Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111 or online.”
A Tesco spokesperson said: ‘We are shocked and saddened by this terrible incident and our thoughts are with everyone affected.
“We help the police in their investigations.”
A police vehicle is pictured outside a property in Paganhill, Stroud, where officers arrested a 40-year-old woman on suspicion of murder and theft
A mobility scooter, believed to belong to the victim, was found around 8am, abandoned nearly two miles away in Bisley Old Road (pictured)
The victim, in his 60s, was found unresponsive and without his mobility scooter in the parking lot of a Tesco supermarket in Stroud
