A disabled man who was allegedly ‘enslaved’ by his wife and carer as they used him as a ‘cash cow’ has admitted in court to sending ‘sexualised messages’ to five other women, but denies he and his wife had split up by 2016.
Tom Somerset-How, 40, who has cerebral palsy and is partially blind, told Portsmouth Crown Court he did send sexual messages to other women while his wife Sarah Somerset-How, 49, and carer George Webb, 50, were allegedly having an affair.
But he denies suggestions by defence lawyers that he and his wife had decided to split up, saying he suspected she was having an affair with Webb after hearing ‘sounds at night’ which he thought was them having sex.
Prosecutors allege Mrs Somerset-How and Mr Webb enslaved Mr Somerset-How – who needs 24-hour care – and treated him like a ‘cash-cow’, spending £12,000 of his inheritance while leaving him ‘barely alive’.
The court today heard Mr Somerset-How messaged five women and asked one ‘if it would be weird to see two of them have sex together’.
Tom Somerset-How (pictured), 40, who has cerebral palsy, said he heard ‘sounds’ and texted his wife Sarah Somerset-How, 49, to ask ‘what was going on’
Sarah Somerset-How (pictured), 49, is on trial in court for allegedly abusing her disabled husband Tom Somerset-How, 40
While the couple bought lingerie and DJ equipment with cash he had been given by relatives, the 40-year-old ‘intelligent’ history graduate was left as a ‘prisoner in his own home’ and treated ‘like a piece of property’, a Portsmouth Crown Court jury was told on Thursday.
The court heard that Mr Somerset-How met his wife in 2008 through one of her work friends while he was living in sheltered accomodation and recovering from surgery.
They moved into a purpose-built bungalow in Chichester, West Sussex in 2010 and were given 24-hour care paid for by social services during the week.
Mr Webb then arrived as Mr Somerset-How’s carer in 2016, with all three of them living in the house, before this became a private care service at the rate of £4,000 a month.
The pair allegedly left wheelchair-bound Mr Somerset-How in bed for 90 per cent of the time, allowed him a shower once a week and went for a whole year without brushing his teeth.
For food he would be left with only a packet of crisps and a sandwich, the court was told, while the pair carried out their plan to ‘ostracise’ him from his family.
During cross-examination on Friday, Webb’s defence barrister claimed Mr Somerset-How was sending five women ‘sexualised’ content.
Robert Bryan asked Mr Somerset-How if he and his wife had already decided to separate before Webb came along in 2016, suggesting they were no longer a couple.
Mr Somerset-How replied: ‘There was no discussion’.
The barrister said ‘you were also messaging other women, weren’t you?’ to which Mr Somerset-How agreed.
The court heard these women were allegedly named Stephanie, Jemma, Kat, Hollie and Loz.
Mr Bryan continued: ‘These were sexualised messages you were sending to other women. You asked if it would be weird to see two of them have sex together. These messages include sending pictures.’
The defence barrister also claimed it was untrue that Mr Somerset-How was ‘enslaved’.
He suggested that Mr Somerset-How would go out for dog walks with Webb and call him ‘bro’ and ‘mate’.
When questioning the wheelchair user about being left without food, Mr Bryan read out a text from April 2019 from the alleged victim to Webb that read, ‘don’t waste your energy making me dinner bro, I’m not hungry. I still have crisps to snack on.’
Prosecutors allege Mrs Somerset-How and Mr Webb (pictured) enslaved Mr Somerset-How – who is almost blind and needs 24-hour care – and treated him like a ‘cash-cow’, spending £12,000 and buying themselves lingerie and DJ equipment
The barrister also suggested Mr Somerset-How would go along with Webb to a music studio he was setting up and messaged him supportive texts.
Mr Bryan suggested that in June 2020, Mr Somerset-How texted Webb, ‘awesome bro, sounds like a tune out of Ibiza’ when he sent a track to him.
Continuing to mention incidents where Mr Somerset-How allegedly left the house, Mr Bryan said: ‘You and George would walk a dog, Ronnie, in a field every morning until lockdown.
And in relation to an incident where Mr Somerset-How claimed Webb hit him with a shoe, Mr Bryan suggested it was an accident when he was cleaning.
When asked about his interactions and messages with Webb, Mr Somerset-How said: ‘I felt I had to take on a certain role to survive.’
Earlier on Friday Mr Somerset-How told the court Webb was a ‘really good carer’ at first and there were ‘absolutely no issues’, but within a year things quickly declined.
Over time, small changes meant Mr Somerset-How felt it ‘became harder to request help’ for things like going to the toilet.
He said: ‘When I asked for help, he would do it really quickly, like it was a chore.’
When asked by prosecutor Paul Cavin KC why he didn’t complain to Webb’s agency, he said ‘afterwards I would be barraged by abuse’.
He continued: ‘I would go entire weeks without getting out of bed, except for when I desperately needed the toilet. At one point, I went for five weeks in bed.
‘I would have to text Sarah when she was at work to ask if she could help me to the toilet when she got home. I would have a urine bottle which wouldn’t be emptied until Sarah got home.
‘There were multiple times when I just couldn’t hold it. There were days when I had to stay there in it until Sarah came home to sort me out.
‘I told Sarah this wasn’t acceptable, but she would just shrug. Sarah said George had the two of us over a barrel. She didn’t elaborate.
‘They would shut the curtains to stop people from seeing in. They would be shut all day. I felt like it was no longer my house.’
Mr Somerset-How (pictured) said Webb was a ‘really good carer’ at first and there were ‘absolutely no issues’, but within a year things quickly declined
Mr Somerset-How claimed claimed Mr Webb once dragged him into the shower and sprayed water on him until he was ‘gasping’
He also told how he suspected Webb and his wife were having an affair after he heard ‘sounds’ and texted Mrs Somerset-How to ask ‘what was going on’.
But Mr Somerset-How received a reply from Mr Webb telling him to ‘go back to sleep’ and they were ‘just discussing’ his care.
He also said the pair would ‘go away together on weekends’ and leave him with only a ‘bottle of squash’ for up to 12 hours.
Mr Somerset-How told the jury about the moment he stopped receiving visitors at home.
He said: ‘At one point, my mum came round to drop off a duvet in an unexpected visit.
‘Webb lost it completely. He was screaming at her. From what I heard, it sounded like he was in her face, screaming at her for five minutes.
‘After she left, he came straight in and said, ‘no one is ever coming over again. Not even for a cup of tea’.’
During this time, Mr Somerset-How claims Webb threw a shoe at him in anger.
He told the jury: ‘George got really angry. I didn’t see what he threw because I shut my eyes, but it felt like a shoe.
‘Sarah was there in the room and just got me a cold, wet tea towel to hold against my face. I still have a small indentation where it hit me.’
On another occasion, he claimed Webb dragged him into the shower and sprayed water on him until he was ‘gasping’.
Mr Somerset-How also claimed Mr Webb (pictured, right) threw a shoe at him in anger which left an ‘indentation’ where it hit him
He said: ‘I had a bowel accident and needed to be showered. George said it was horrible and ‘you are disgusting’ and that he didn’t get paid enough for this.
‘I don’t know what I said to him, but he held the shower over my face. I was struggling and gasping.
‘Sarah said he had already apologised and explained. I told her he had breached his contract multiple times. She said we had no other choice, we couldn’t do anything.’
When Mr Cavin KC questioned Mr Somerset-How about the money he claimed the duo stole from him, he said he approved use of the money for food and agreed to a loan which he was told they ‘needed’.
He said: ‘I was told we – as a household – needed the loan to clear credit card debt. I said yes, because I was told that otherwise we would be in serious trouble. I thought the amount was far less.’
The couple deny all the charges. The four-week trial continues.
