Manager charged over care home deaths

The co-manager of a Somerset care home has been charged with murdering three elderly residents.

Rachel Baker, 44, who ran Parkfields Residential Care Home near Glastonbury with her husband, Leigh Baker, is appearing in court this afternoon.

She is accused of murdering Lucy Cox, 97, Francis Hay, 79, and Marion Alder, who died at the home between 2006 and 2007.

Controlled drugs

Rachel Baker is also charged with eleven counts of possessing a controlled drug.

The couple, who were originally arrested and released on bail in December 2007, both face charges of perverting the course of justice.

They are due to appear at a preliminary hearing at South Somerset and Mendip Magistrates’ Court in Yeovil.

Detective Superintendent Trevor Simpson said the Crown Prosecution Service’s authorisation of the charges was the culmination of a “complex” and “lengthy” investigation.