Murderer who called sex chat lines after killing widow, 79, in her own home found dead in prison

Depraved killer Gareth Dack strangled the much-loved foster mother in her home in 2016

A convicted killer who strangled a grandmother to death in 2016 has been found dead in prison.

Gareth Dack was branded "perverted and disgusting" by Mrs Justice Whipple when he was handed a life sentence at Teeside Crown Court in 2017 after being found guilty of the murder of 79-year-old widow, Norma Bell.

The court heard how he attacked Mrs Bell, a mother of nine, in her home before cutting up her clothing and calling a number of sex chat lines as her deceased body lay on the floor in front of him.

The 41-year-old then tried to set fire to the house in a bid to destroy the evidence.

During his three-week trial in 2017, the court also heard how Dack was heavily in debt due to a drug habit, and had pressured Mrs Bell to lend him £10 just days before the brutal murder.

The father-of-four was found dead earlier this week at HMP Frankland, near Durham.

A Prison Service spokesperson said: "Gareth Dack died on April 21 2025 at HMP Frankland.

"As with all deaths in custody, the Prison and Probation Ombudsman will investigate."

Mrs Bell and her late husband John had three sons and were parents to six long-term foster children they considered their own.

A family statement after the trial said she had a "heart as big as a lion", adding: "Her murder has left an enormous gap in our lives and forgiveness will never be given."

During sentencing, Mrs Justice Whipple told the defendant: "You killed Norma Bell in cold blood in her own home when she was defenceless.

"She had done nothing to deserve your violence, then you set fire to her home in a failed attempt to cover your tracks."

Dack's death occurred in the same prison in which Manchester Arena bomber Hashem Abedi threw hot oil at officers and stabbed them with makeshift weapons on 12 April.

Abedi, 28, was jailed for life for helping his brother carry out the 2017 suicide bombing, which killed 22 people.

One officer remains in hospital in a stable condition, while two others have been discharged.