The distraught doctor and his family desperately tried to retrieve the paintings, unaware that they had been auctioned off by Bonhams for 78,000. Neither of the two men showed any reaction as the jury convicted them of two counts of theft. It was in fact a determined crusade by you to get from the doctor the best pieces that he had. He said they had pestered their elderly victim repeatedly to part with the paintings, until finally they decided to take no more notice of his refusal to sell. The court later heard that Mr Openshaw had only one previous conviction against him, but that Mr Barrett had a list of court appearances dating back 28 years.
Police believe the pair had spent years preying on elderly people across southern England.
He said it was difficult to gauge the extent of this sort of crime as victims were often too old and scared to come to court. The five-day trial heard that Dr Hancock and his wife had built up a small collection of antiques and works of art including the two Lowrys over a number of years. About five years ago, Robert Barrett and Michael Openshaw called round expressing an interest in some of the items. However, he always made it clear that the paintings, which he intended to leave to his two daughters, were not for sale. It now seems likely that the two oils will eventually be returned to Dr Thompson-Hancock and his wife.