A mother of ten, Mandy Wixon, has been convicted and sentenced for keeping a woman as a slave for 25 years in the United Kingdom.
At Gloucester Crown Court, Judge Ian Lawrie described the case as having a “Dickensian quality.”
Wixon was found guilty of false imprisonment, forcing a person to perform compulsory labour, and assault causing actual bodily harm.
Court proceedings revealed that the victim, identified only as K, was handed over to Wixon at age 16 in 1996.
Over the years, she was subjected to repeated abuse, including having washing-up liquid forced into her mouth, bleach splashed on her face, her head shaved, and being beaten with a broom handle.
Her movements were restricted, food controlled, and she was forced to bathe secretly at night.
Police found the victim in March 2021 after a welfare alert from one of Wixon’s sons.
Officers described her bedroom as resembling a “prison cell,” and said she was visibly terrified.
Prosecutors told the court that K had effectively disappeared into a “black hole” for years, with no sightings or records of her outside the house.
The sentencing marks a significant ruling against modern-day slavery, highlighting the importance of vigilance and intervention in cases of long-term abuse.
