A Lynn woman who attempted to hire a hitman on the dark web to kill a former colleague after their fling came to an end will wait longer to find out her punishment.
Helen Hewlett, 44, of Hawthorns, was found guilty of soliciting to murder and stalking following a trial at Norwich Crown Court in February.
She had been due to appear at the court again today for sentencing, but this has been pushed back to May 3.
The trial, which lasted around two weeks, heard that Hewlett had paid more than £17,000 in cryptocurrency to hire a hitman on the dark web to kill Paul Belton.
The court was told that the colleagues had worked together at Hain Daniels food factory in Fakenham, before Mr Belton moved to Kinnerton Confectionery. Hewlett later also did the same.
The pair – who were both married with children – had become flirty with each other after sharing details of their lives, but after an intimate encounter in the factory car park at Hain Daniels, Mr Belton “withdrew” from Hewlett.
Mr Belton was made redundant at Hain Daniels and got a new job at Kinnerton, with Hewlett later starting to work there too.
But when he did not accept her advances, Hewlett resigned from her job in August 2021 and said Mr Belton’s behaviour was the reason, but a grievance procedure rejected her allegations.
Prosecutor Marti Blair KC told the jury that Hewlett then sent a large number of emails to him over a period of around a year, some apologising, while others blamed him for her leaving work and accused him of treating her poorly.
The prosecution described some messages – which said if he continued to ignore her, she would visit him at work – as “something of a veiled threat”.
In August 2022, Norfolk Police were alerted to a post on the Online Killers Market site – an advert asking for “someone to kill in Norfolk” and that it was “vital that it looks like an accident” – and arrested Hewlett.
In her police interview, she said she did not want Mr Belton to be killed and did not think “it was genuine”.
Defence barrister Matthew McNiff KC had argued Hewlett was “vulnerable” and “exploited” by those around her.
But a jury of 11 found Hewlett guilty of soliciting to murder and stalking Mr Belton.
Judge Katharine Moore said: “The defendant must ready herself to receive a custodial sentence.”
Following the verdict, Detective Inspector Paul Morton, of Norfolk Police, said: “We are very pleased that, after careful consideration, the jury have reached a guilty verdict on both counts.
“This has been a very complex and technical trial with a huge amount of information to consider.
“This is a rare type of offence and it just shows the dark web is still not a safe place for criminals to hide.”
Hewlett was remanded in custody. She is set to be sentenced in four weeks’ time on May 3.
