FRAUDSTER John Darwin takes to the water with his wife – and this time he’s wearing a life jacket to prevent him from drowning for a second time. The missing-at-sea canoe conman now lives in the Philippines and married Mercy May just over four years ago. And former prison officer John, 68, seems to be […]
FRAUDSTER John Darwin takes to the water with his wife – and this time he’s wearing a life jacket to prevent him from drowning for a second time.
The missing-at-sea canoe conman now lives in the Philippines and married Mercy May just over four years ago.
And former prison officer John, 68, seems to be having a splashing time on the other side of the world with Mercy – who is 23 years his junior.
He laughed and joked for the camera as he bobbed up and down in the warm waters of the Hinatuan Enchanted River tourist spot in Mindanao – 600 miles from the capital Manila.
The couple celebrated their fourth wedding anniversary a month ago and Mercy wrote: “Happy 4th wedding anniversary my blue eyes your my everything I love you sweetheart.”
He was jailed for a wicked fraud which saw his then wife Anne claim he was missing in the North Sea after taking out his canoe in March 2002.
That prompted a search of 62 square miles of sea which only resulted in the battered remains of his red canoe being found washed up on the coast of North East England.
That allowed Anne to claim more than £500,000 in life insurance while Darwin hid in a concealed room in their home in Seaton Carew leaving their two sons to believe he was dead.
They used their ill-gotten gains to fund trips around the world, including a brief new life together in Panama City.
But Darwin lasted a matter of months in Central America, returning to hand himself into police in December 2007.
He served half a six-year prison sentence for fraud and married Mercy – from Manila – shortly after they first met.
Darwin met devout Catholic Mercy online and made his first visit to the Philippines on January 1, 2015. A day later they were engaged and on February 25 they were married in a civil ceremony.
She wrote a gushing message to her friends on Facebook shortly after the wedding to announce she was “in love” with Darwin.
Mercy – who has three children from a previous relationship – said: “I love you so much sweetheart, your always my baby.
“Falling in love is easy, but staying in love is very special.”
And on a photograph of Darwin dressed in jeans and a blue shirt and cap and shades posted on her Facebook page in November she wrote: “He my baby handsome.”
