KAREN Matthews was dubbed ‘Britain’s worst mum’ after playing a part in the kidnapping of her nine-year-old daughter Shannon in 2008.
The evil mum’s accomplice in the sickening plot was Michael Donovan, who died in 2024.
Handout Evil Karen Matthews was jailed for plotting to kidnap her own daughter[/caption]
Who is Karen Matthews?
Karen Matthews is the mum of Shannon Matthews, a schoolgirl who made national headlines when she vanished in 2008.
Shannon‘s mother made a number of public appeals for information on her daughter’s whereabouts during the month she was missing, despite knowing where she was all along.
Hundreds of neighbours joined the search for Karen’s daughter which cost West Yorkshire Police £3.2million and lasted 24 days.
The nine-year-old was found tethered and drugged inside the base of a double bed at relative Michael Donovan’s grotty flat almost a month after she disappeared.
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Matthews was going out with Donovan’s nephew Craig Meehan at the time.
She devised the elaborate plot with Donovan in a bid to claim the £50,000 reward money for finding Shannon.
They had planned to release the schoolgirl, “discover her” then take her to a police station and claim the reward before splitting the cash.
Meehan, who had nothing to do with Shannon’s abduction, was jailed for 20 weeks after unrelated child sex abuse material was discovered on his computer.
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When was Karen Matthews in jail?
On December 4, 2008, Karen and Donovan were found guilty of kidnapping, false imprisonment and perverting the course of justice.
Both were sentenced at Leeds Crown Court to eight years behind bars.
Matthews served just half of her time and was released from prison in 2012.
Donovan died on April 16, 2024 at a secure unit in West Yorkshire.
Was Karen Matthews given a new identity?
Matthews was relocated to the south of England after leaving prison and given a new identity.
Despite being given a new name she once claimed her past made it impossible for her to find a job and she had to survive on £25-a-week handouts.
Matthews complained in 2016: “I haven’t even got credit on my phone“.
However, a year later, the evil mum was pictured working in a charity shop the day after the first episode of 2017 BBC drama The Moorside aired, later pictured going shopping before meeting her Bible group for coffee.
It was reported the former factory cleaner wanted plastic surgery to stop her getting hassled in the street.
The disgraced mum still maintains her innocence and has been bombarded with death threats since the BBC drama was broadcast.
‘Missing’ Shannon was found a mile away in the base of a divan bedPA:Press Association
How many kids did Karen Matthews have?
Karen is the mother of seven children from five different men.
All of the children, including Shannon, were taken into care after her arrest and conviction for the kidnap plot.
Shannon is now an adult and is not believed to have any contact with her mother.
All seven of Matthews’ kids have been given new identities and lifelong anonymity.
It is understood that all of the siblings legally changed their names after they were taken into care.
Timeline of the Shannon Matthews kidnap plot
A look at the events that unfolded following the disappearance of schoolgirl Shannon Matthews:
February 19, 2008 – Shannon Matthews disappears and was last spotted outside Westmoor Junior School, Dewsbury.
February 19, 2008 – Police announce that they have started a massive search involving more than 200 officers as concern grows for the missing girl.
March 1, 2008 – Karen Matthews issues an emotional appeal for Shannon’s return on the eve of Mother’s Day.
March 5, 2008 – Police release a recording of part of the 999 call Matthews made reporting Shannon missing.
March 14, 2008 – Shannon is found alive and hidden in the base of a divan bed at a house at Michael Donovan’s house in Batley Carr, West Yorkshire.
April 9, 2008 – Karen Matthews is charged with child neglect and perverting the course of justice over her daughter’s disappearance – new charges of Kidnap and false imprisonment were later added.
December 4, 2008 – Matthews and Donovan are found guilty of kidnap, false imprisonment and perverting the course of justice and both sentenced to eight years behind bars.