Helen Hewlett paid £17,000 for a contract killer to target a colleague following an infatuation.

A 44-year-old woman from King’s Lynn, Norfolk, has been found guilty of attempting to hire a hitman to kill a colleague after becoming obsessed with him following a brief affair. Helen Hewlett was convicted of soliciting murder after paying a £17,000 deposit to a website that offered contract killing services, as reported by the BBC.

The intended victim was a 50-year-old co-worker at the Linda McCartney Frozen Food factory, with whom Hewlett became infatuated. The court was told that Hewlett placed an order on the dark web, requesting the murder to appear accidental.

During the trial, it was revealed that Hewlett had persistently contacted the victim, Paul Belton, through emails and texts over a two-year period, beginning after their brief fling. In August 2022, Belton left the job, but Hewlett followed him to a nearby chocolate factory, where she accused him of harassment, racial abuse, and homophobia—claims that were dismissed by the company.

Belton eventually reported her to the police, stating that he just wanted the harassment to stop. Hewlett provided the hitman website with Belton’s personal details, including his home and work addresses.

In her police interview, Hewlett claimed that she never intended for the murder to take place and described the action as a way to express her anger. However, after posting the ad, she was found to have searched for news stories about fatal accidents.

Detective Inspector Paul Morton commented on the case: “This has been a complex trial with a large amount of information, and it highlights that the dark web is far from a safe haven for criminals.”

While Hewlett was cleared of a more serious stalking charge, she was convicted of a lesser charge of stalking without serious alarm or distress. She will be sentenced in April.