In the dock for neglect: The internet bride left as an unpaid carer for her mother-in-law while her British husband went on holiday
Chun Fung Johnson pleaded guilty to neglecting Elsie Johnson, 90
Her husband had taken a month-long holiday in the Philippines
He returned to find his mother had broken pelvis, bruising and a 4in cut
By John Stevens
PUBLISHED:23:02 GMT, 26 April 2013| UPDATED: 23:02 GMT, 26 April 2013
A Chinese internet bride left to care for her elderly mother-in-law while her British husband was on a month-long holiday has been convicted of neglect.
Chun Fung Johnson, 41, moved to Britain hoping for a better life after meeting Brian Johnson, 56, online, but instead she became an ‘unpaid carer’ for his frail mother.
Elsie Johnson, 90, moved into the couple’s home in Benfleet, Essex, and when Mr Johnson went on a month-long holiday in the Philippines – during which he could not be contacted by telephone – his wife was left to look after her.
When he returned, he found his mother had a broken pelvis, bruising and a 4in cut on her arm. His wife had not called for a doctor or taken her to hospital.
When Mrs Johnson was finally taken to hospital, doctors called the police.
Appearing at Basildon Crown Court, Chun Fung pleaded guilty to neglecting her mother-in-law.
The court heard the injuries did not conclusively suggest that Chun Fung had mishandled her mother-in-law and could have been accidental.
Judge Owen Davies described her care of Mrs Johnson as ‘devoted, compassionate and caring’, but said she did not do enough to summon help for her when she was injured.
Chun Fung, who has little grasp of English,
now faces deportation back to China.
Jacqueline Carey, defending, told the court that Chun Fung had been used by her husband as an unpaid carer to his frail mother after she moved to the UK in 2009, and it was not the life she had been promised.
Mrs Johnson moved in with her son and daughter-in-law after she suffered a stroke and developed dementia.
Sentencing, Judge Davies said: ‘Your care of Elsie was devoted, compassionate and caring. Your husband left the country and for a substantial length of time could not be contacted by telephone.
‘To be fair to you, I am able to accept that you were in difficulties in knowing how to summon help.
‘But the fact that you pleaded guilty shows that you know that you did not do enough – even knocking on a neighbour’s door would have been sufficient.’
Chun Fung was handed a six-month prison sentence, suspended for 12 months.
She is being detained by immigration services after she overstayed her visa, which was not renewed when she and Mr Johnson ended their three-year marriage following the allegations.
Mr Johnson was also accused of neglect but was acquitted by a jury last month.
He was not in court to see his ex-wife sentenced, but speaking after the hearing, he claimed that Chun Fung had wanted to look after his mother. ‘Chun Fung has doted on my mum for years,’ he said.
‘She has done everything to look after her. They love each other. They had a good relationship, they had a good time.
‘I’m devastated. I’ve lost my mum and now I’ve lost my wife. The stress of this has torn my family apart.’
Mr Johnson said that his mother had sustained her injuries falling in the shower while he was on holiday. ‘Chun Fung could not catch her,’ he said.
Mr Johnson, who has a child from a previous marriage to another foreign-born wife, said he met Chun Fung on the internet.
He said: ‘I didn’t want to be in a relationship with an English woman. I’m 56 now. I’d had enough of that and I just wanted something different.’
Mrs Johnson has been moved to a care home in Rochford, Essex.
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