Warning: Graphic content, readers’ discretion advised. This story contains a recollection of crime and can be triggering to some readers discretion advised.
For years, the case would go unsolved, while Margaret battled to piece together the clues to his death. Using every ounce of time, effort and money she had, her life became consumed in trying to figure out who had killed her son. Evelyn Bohol, Steve’s wife, find herself at the very heart of these investigations.
On a hot night in 2002, a murder took place in this philippines apartment.
The victim was a british businessman, his death would transform the life of his mother.
This is the women Margaret believes murder her son. she’s Steven’s widow Evelyn and is on trial in Manila, she always protested her innocence.but her mother in law has spent two yeas fighting to get her in the dock.
Steven grew up with two younger sisters in Nottingham, things changed when his dad died. Steven was just 14.
while Steven was getting his first job,working in computers in nottingham his future bride evelyn on the other side of the world.
Daram samar is a remote island in the philippines , you can only reach it by boat, there is no running water , electricity or sanitation .
When Steven was 21 ,he was offered an exciting job abroad, a computer comapny promised to triple his salary if he left Nottingham to work in Hong Kong.
Steven took up a new hobby, he joined the flying clug in angely city in the philippines just two hours from hong kong.
I’s where many professionals come to party ,he found himself surrounded by pretty women.
Like stephen Evelyn decided to leave home for new opportunities but she was only 13.
It’s a two-day journey by boat and bus to angeles city, where many young girls like Evelyn come for work.
Angeles is known as the sex capital of the philippines. the bars here are the best opportunity for girls from the villages to earn money to send back to their families.
Evelyn was one of the lucky ones
Her dream of being rescued by a rich man was about to come true.
Steven fell for Everlyn the moment he saw her,he took her out for the night then paid the bar owner 500 pounds so she’d never have to return.
Evelyn davis is on trial in the philippines for murdering her british husband Steven . she claims she is innocent.
It was on a visit to hong kong that Margret met her son’s new girlfriend for the first time. Evelyn was just 17.Steven was 10 years older.
Steven arranged a special suprise for them.
The ceremony was held up because Evelyn couldn’t read the vows. she never been to school.
Margaret and Alan were flattered to be invited on Steven and Evelyn honeymoon.
They went to a tropical island of puerto galera. Margaret was worried by what she saw.Steven would try to hold evelyn’s but she put her shoulder away. little things moms notice sometimes margaret said.
And according to Evelyn steven had told her that his mother doesn’t want evelyn to get married with him.but steven told his mother that he loved evelyn and she’s the one she’s gonna be mother of my kids.
Steven’s hope came true.first jessica was born.
Then two years later joshua.
the family moved from hong kong to angeles city.it’s where Evelyn had worked as a bar girl.
Now she was in a different world .they rented a house in the most expensive neighborhood. Steven was earning 60 .000 pounds a year as computer technician, he gave Evelyn a monthly allowance of a thousand pounds.
It wasn’t just evelyn’s life that was transformed life on the island changed dramatically for her parents too. Steven was sending them large amounts of money enough to buy a fishing boat and to build the only brick house in the village.
He paid their ares to visit him and Evelyn in their new home.
When they’d gone pillows would have gone missing,or the rise maker, anything they could come and carry away , like water filter and Evelyn would feel it was okay because she’d just say to stephen “we go by some more”.
Margaret and Alan also visited at least once a year.
They always took their video camera nad they and they notice their daughter in law was acting suspiciously. whenever they saw her she was text messaging, communicating with someone. you could hear a giggle and a laugh.
Margaret and Alan weren’t the only ones who suspected evelyn was having an affair.
Her sister Gina had moved into work as a nanny to the children,she confronted evelyn about the rumors.she finally admitted that it was true that she did have a lover and she told Gina that Sreven and evelyn were having problems.
The man in question, was a local security guard earning a thousand pounds a year, that was the same as evelyn’s monthly allowance.
his name was Arnold adorai.
Steven was becoming increasingly suspicious about his wife’s behavior,money was going missing.
he’s given Evelyn the fees for Jessica to go to aprivate nursery school.
One day he decided to take his daughter there himself.
he was really embarrassed because Jessica wasn’t even enrolled and Evelyn had even pawned her wedding ring.
Evelyn was actually buying things for her boyfriend and she used the rent money to by a motorbike for him.
Steven too started to spend time away from his family with his single friends, they went out to the bars and clubs he used to go to before he was married.
Stven told Evelyn he was away on buisness, in fact he was staying at Mike’s house where they brought girls back to party, this was the last home video Stephen recorde weeks before his murder.
Steven still wanted his marriage to work ,he gave Evelyn an ultimatum.she had to give the missing money back and get a job or go to college, but nothing changed,so he thtreatened her with divorce.
She was face going back to being a prostitute in a bar, she would be exactly back where she was five years before selling herself to strangers or living in poverty and back in their province after having been the queen.
Steven decided to stop Evelyn’s allowance, now she was no longer able to support the large network of family and friends that had come to depend on her.
On july the 18th 2002, Margaret got the news that every mother dreads.
Margaret Davis, found out that her son had been killed when she received a phone call from her son’s business partner mike.
That night Steven and Mike had been staying in Manila in their business apartment.
Mike woke up when three men broke in, one held a gun to his head and said ” is this him?” when he was told no he went into the room where stephen was sleeping. at that point ,mike heard a yell and thtee or four shots,then he heard a running down the stairs.
Mike went to stephen’s room and saw him lying there and felt for a pulse, there was non .he went downstairs and went to the neighbors and called the police.
And he just said loud to one of the neighbors that f**** killed him. and he meant Evelyn.
There was no evidence to link it to Evelyn,It was ure suspicion when Margaret said to Mike it was a good reaction:
” has it got anything to do with evelyn?”
Alan,couldn’t see it,he knew she was arrogant and ignorant and all the other things they’d learned her to be but a murdere?
alan couldn’t see it.
As soon as Margaret learnt of her son Steven murder she flew to the philippines.
At the funural parlor , she thought her widow Evelyn was acting suspiciously
Evelyn was sat to the left as Margaret and Allan walked in and she didn’t get up and Margret and Allan went towards stephen’s coffin.
Evelyn never came to them and Evelyn didn’t seemed upset ,They never saw a tear from that girl’s eyes.
but she asked for Mike. and that was before Margaret and Alan adressed that Steven was lying there dead infront of them.
The police investigatin was moving very slowly, their first theory was that someone connected with Steven’s company might have killed him.
Margaret took things into her own hands.she wasn’t going to return to UK until she had got the truth about stephens murder.
Margaret hired her own private investigtor a former policeman ,who doesn’t want to be identified.
Margaret’s investigtor carried out 24 -hours surveillance on evelyn, there were two men who paid regular visits to her home.
One was evelyn’s lover the other his friend and another security man. Margret passed this on to the police, who called both men in.
Mike was able to identify them as two of the three.
Who broke into his flat on the night of the murder.
They were both arrested ,but margaret’s camapig to hunt down stephen’s killers was putting her and Alan’s lives at risk.
she was warned that they were in danger, friends of the accused knew who they were .
After two months it was time to go home.but Margaret wasn’t going to leave the philippines without something of stephens
His children .
Margaret wanted to take jessica and joshua home to live with her and alan.
Margaret persuade evelyn to let jessica stay with her for the weekend.
A few days later she left phillippines for england with her three year old granddaughter. she hadn’t been able to find her grandson.
Next on Margaret’s list was her grandson,joshua was staying with evelyn’s parents.
Margaret sent her investigator to the island with an offer of 200 pounds to hand him over.
Two months after she fled the phillipines Margaret was reunited with her grandson at Heathrow airport.
Evelyn has not seen her children now for two years,they’re Living with Margaret and Alan.
Even though Margaret was on the other side of the wordl she was determined to prove her daughter in law’s guilt, for two years she worked every single day and ofthen throughout the night to getting evidence
It was a costly business, she even had to pay the police’s petrol money to interview witnesses. alltogether she spent 55 .000 pounds.
It was evelyn’s relatives that gave Margaret the breakthrough she needed
The family held the key to what happened to Steven that night and this man was to provide the crucial evidence.
he’s Robin butus ,Evelyn’s brother in law and Gina’s husband.
He’d been acting suspicious since the killing when the police tried to question him he went into hiding.
Evelyn’s aunts knew where he was and margaret persuaded them to turn him in.
At last the truth was out.
Robin told the police that evelyn’s lover, the friend and evelyn then drow to the flat where mike and stephen was staying.
The thre men gotout of the car and went upstairs, evelyn’s lover was the one who fired the gun two shots , then two more.evelyn sat in the car to act as lookout.
Evelyn told everybody that stephen was a millionair and she would get all steven’s money when stephen was dead.
Robins confession meant that Evelyn’s lover and his complice were convicted of murder, they are both serving life sentences
Robin was set free in return for providing evidence.
In february 2004 , evelyn was arrested and charged ,even though she didn’t fire the gun herself she can still be found guilty of murder
The judge will decide if she planned Steven’s death with her lover.
Evelyn denies everything but there is strong evidence against her, the men had a key to get into the apartment ,on the night of the murder, Evelyn claimed she was a sleep at home .
Yet a neighbor saw hercome back in the early hours of the morning, there are 14 people giving evidence against Evelyn but there is not a single witness to support her version of events.
Evelyn’s been in jail for seven months ,the only visitor she’s had is her father, the rest of her families turned against her and they have given evidence that they heard her and her lover planning to murder stpehen for his money.
In six weeks time the judge will announce his vedict, the penalty for murder in the philippines isa life sentence or even execution by hanging.
Margaret’s goal is in sight ,the judge is about to pronounce his verdict on evelyn and margaretis determined to be there.
Evelyn is about to find out if she will be set free or convicted of murdering her husband.
Steven’s mother Margaret and her partner Alan have waited two and a half years for this.
With no family or friends to support Evelyn , the only person for her to talk to is her lawer.
Evelyn has been spared the death penalty but she got the maximum life sentence that means
40 years in prison with no possibility of an early release .
