Terminally ill woman robbed by men who found her 'vulnerable'—she proved them wrong by taking a stand from hospice bed
Some people might give importance to justice and doing the right thing even in the toughest moments. A woman who was robbed while she was shopping in Birkenhead back in 2020 was determined to get justice, too, even if it was not the easiest thing for her. The person, Bonnie Hughes, 33 at that time, had become seriously ill because of a brain tumor by the time the hearing happened in 2021. But she testified from her hospice bed and made sure the robbers were punished for their crimes, per the BBC.
Bonnie's purse was stolen while she was shopping in 2020 and she was in a hospice at Manor House in Wirral when the time for the hearing came. But the woman was sure that she didn't want the men to get out of the crime unscathed. "Just because I'm visibly vulnerable, I couldn't let them win." She testified through a video link from her bed, as the woman was really "shook" because of the robbery incident at Pyramids Shopping Centre. The men asked her the time and stole her purse from her pocket. One of the men, Steven Watterson, pleaded guilty and was sentenced to eight months in jail. But the other man, Paul Hodgson, denied that he had been a part of the robbery.
However, because of Bonnie's testimony, the man could be prosecuted. The Crown Prosecution Service set up the link and provided her with a Bible to swear on, as she couldn't come to the Sefton Magistrates' Court because of her condition. "I was determined to make sure the defendant was prosecuted for what he had done to me. I am seriously ill now, so there was no way that I would have been able to get to the court to give evidence." Hodgson was found guilty at the hearing and jailed for 13 months. Neil Colville, from the CPS, was impressed with the woman's determination for justice even when she was really sick. The Wallasey woman and mom of two passed away on February 12, 2024, at the age of 35, per Liverpool Echo.
Bonnie's mom, Donna, was devastated at losing her "kind and considerate" daughter after a 30-year battle with brain cancer. The woman was first diagnosed with a brain tumor when she was just 5 years old, back in 1995. "When she was little, Bonnie started losing her balance and coordination. We took her to the doctors and a scan showed she had a growth on her brain," Donna recounted. The doctors had told her that the little girl only had a year to live. According to a biopsy conducted at Alder Hey hospital, she had glioblastoma, an aggressive form of brain cancer. The woman went through chemotherapy and radiotherapy and was in remission until the tumor came back when she was 12.
Bonnie also had two kids, Sophie and Leroy, even though she was told that she would never be able to have kids. The woman beat the odds quite a few times, also at the time when she was placed in hospice during the robbery hearing. The doctors had told the family that Bonnie only had four weeks to live back in 2021. "Three times we were told that Bonnie wasn't going to make it. But she had a real fighting spirit. The neurosurgeon said she was a miracle," Donna went on. "Bonnie was an inspiration to us all and I was so proud of her. She has left a big hole in my heart." Her family would remember her as a fun, loving and caring person.