Cheating husband who hired hitman to kill wife is jailed

Allen Morgan, 74, of Brighton, lived in Swindon during the 1970s before moving to Bedfordshire with his partner Carol, who he met at a single parents' group.

Carol was found murdered at the Wavy Line Food Fare newsagent she ran with her husband on August 13 1981 – aged 36 – and for many decades the case was unsolved.

But Morgan was unanimously convicted by a jury of conspiracy to murder Carol at Luton Crown Court on July 29 and on Monday was been jailed for life with a minimum term of 22 years.

Morgan was tried alongside his current wife, Margaret Morgan, 75, who police say was charged with conspiracy to murder but was acquitted.

The court heard how the killer used a heavy weapon to attack Carol, which caused injuries to her body and skull.

Carol Morgan (Image: PA Media)

Mr Justice Martin Spencer, sentencing Allen, said: “The brutality of the killing shocked all those who attended the scene.

“Only one person knows the identity of the murderer and that is you, Mr Morgan.

“That is the secret which you have harboured for the last 40 years.

“The law has now caught up with you, and you must pay due punishment for your part in this crime, but the murderer remains at large, if indeed he is still alive.”

At the time of Carol’s death, there was not enough evidence to charge anyone and Morgan had an alibi, but according to Bedfordshire Police the case was reopened by detectives in 2018 following a review by a cold case team.

On the day of her murder, Allen took her two children to the cinema in Luton to see a double bill and they were not due back until nearly 11pm, despite never having taken his step-children out without Carol before.

Pavlos Panayi KC, opening the prosecution case on April 17, said: "The prosecution say the motivation of this crime was never just cigarettes or cash – this was a planned murder.”

He added Allen had been having an affair with Margaret for more than a year before Carol’s death and he felt he could not divorce her due to financial issues.

He said: “Carol Morgan had brought the money into the marriage and as a result of that fact and because of spiralling debts, a divorce was financially out of the question.”

Following her death, Margaret divorced her then husband, moved in with Allen and they later married and have been together since.

The court also heard how a witness, who was 17 back in 1981 and is 60 now, had come forward in 2021 and told police that Margaret had brought her to a pub where Allen had asked whether she knew anyone who could help him kill his wife.

Mr Panayi said she was "shocked and appalled and she left the pub" but "kept silent about what she heard that night", until reporting it in 2021. 

He added: "The prosecution suggest her evidence does provide an additional support for the prosecution case that the defendants together wanted Carol Morgan dead and had begun to plan for the recruitment of a man to kill her.

“We do not know who they eventually found to commit the murder and that man may never be brought to justice.”

During the nine-week trial, it was revealed that the killer had stolen cash from a secret drawer in the shop’s office, which Bedfordshire Police said suggested they had been given inside knowledge and the money was part of the payment for the murder.